1 . Most people, if you quizzed them, probably wouldn’t know how much of all global trade is done by sea. It’s one of several reasons that the pollution and carbon emissions from shipping gain much less attention than those from road transport and other industries. It’s over the horizon, out of sight and out of mind.

Today, the international shipping industry is the main mode of transport for around 90 per cent of world trade. It’s powered almost entirely by fossil fuels. Studies show that alternative technologies and zero-emission fuels — including electrofuels such as hydrogen, ammonia and methanol — have the potential to significantly reduce the industry’s carbon footprint and thus require urgent implementation (实施). There’s just one catch: they don’t exist yet.

Even if the technology were available, the infrastructure (基础设施) for that technology or fuel is going to take time to develop. And an even bigger challenge is going to be whether that methanol or ammonia fuel is green, which touches on other industries such as renewable electricity. Do we even have enough renewable electricity in the world to be able to generate these fuels? It’s a complex supply chain that requires cooperation across the industry. It’s not something that one company can solve by itself.

According to Piotr Konopka, senior manager for energy and decarbonisation (碳减排) programs at DP World, there are some simple behavioral changes that can help cut down on fuel used in the meantime, from the regular maintenance and reduced idling of port equipment to the implementation of weather routing that helps ships avoid rougher, more fuel-intensive stretches of water. “Of course, efficiency is unlikely to ever reduce emissions by more than five or ten per cent, but it’s definitely a low-hanging fruit,” he says.

“This is the last moment for the IMO to act decisively to eliminate shipping emissions” says Delaine McCullough, shipping emissions policy manager at environmental NGO Ocean Conservancy. “We need countries to demand that the IMO set strong emission-reduction goals and take action at home if the IMO fails to do the right thing.”

2 . A common claim states that a sheet of paper cannot be folded in half more than seven times. But is this true?

In 2002, Britney Gallivan, then a junior in high school in Pomona, California, folded a single piece of paper in half 12 times. She currently holds the Guinness World Record for the most times to fold a sheet of paper in half.

The prompt that led Gallivan to accomplish this was an extra-credit challenge in math class to fold anything in half 12 times. Her teacher asked the students to fold something thicker: a piece of paper.

Gallivan said “it was very frustrating, as I had many unsuccessful attempts at trying to fold different papers in half. I began to question if folding paper in half more than eight times could be impossible.” However, Gallivan recalled. “I knew I needed to understand what was limiting the folding progression.”

The equations (方程式) that Gallivan came up with calculated how many times a sheet of paper could be folded. She found that in order to fold many times, a long thin sheet is needed — the more a sheet is folded, the thicker the resulting stack becomes, and once the stack becomes thicker than it is long, there is nothing left to fold. She ultimately set her record with a sheet of tissue paper she found online that was 4,000 feet (1,219 meters) — more than three-quarters of a mile, or over a kilometer long, Guinness World Records noted.

“Working on the problem took a tremendous amount of time and effort,” Gallivan said. “As frustrating as it was at times, I learned an immense amount from the experience, which has been valuable to me throughout my life in more capacities than one would expect.”

Since Gallivan set her record, others have made claims of folding a sheet of paper more than 12 times. Still, “I anticipate that my current record will be surpassed,” Gallivan said.

5 . Social media networks have been shown to have greatly changed students’ social behaviour. But the relationship between social media and students’ English language writing has been largely ignored (忽视). So our team of four researchers studied one English as a Second Language (ESL) class at Fiaseman SenirHigh School in Tarkwa, southwestern Ghana. Our research focused on a Form 2 class, made up of 47 students aged 17 and 18 on average. It was one of the largest classes in the school, which offered English as a general subject.

The study found that the students spent really long periods of time on various social media platforms (平台) . But most of the sites they visited were not about learning. That was worrying. One student said, “I visit social media every day. I can’t count. I’m always there. It is very difficult to control my presence there. I truly don’t know what to do.”

We also found that their social media use had resulted in their use of shortened forms of English words-such as “4” in place of “for”, “u” in place of “you” and “d” in place of “the” --in their writing, including in their English examinations. These are the unacceptable written forms of English.

We concluded that the way in which English is being used in examinations by students is being undermined by their use of the English language on social media. This is a growing trend (趋势) that will see students struggle to get ahead in the subject, as more formal English language writing is needed for examinations and further studies.

We recommend that those involved in education should consider connecting teaching practices that take advantage of social media to attract students. This would allow students to learn during their time on social media platforms. Also, teachers should help students choose proper social media sites. They should tell students about the importance and dangers of social media and how to use them, especially for educational purposes.

6 . Bangladesh has a large population. The nation depends on rice as its main food. Growing rice requires a lot of water and energy, especially during the dry season from January to June when farmers mostly rely on groundwater. This results in serious reduction of groundwater as well as greenhouse gas emissions(排放).

Researchers from the University of Washington and Bangladesh’s Ministry of Agriculture have developed a system called Integrated Rice Advisory System (IRAS), which uses satellite data from NASA and its partners to give farmers important information.

IRAS works by combining satellite data on water use, rainfall, and weather forecasts with crop water demand(需求)characteristics to produce location-specific suggestions for farmers. The suggestions tell farmers how much water they have, how much they are using, and how much they need for their crops. They also warn farmers if they have over-or under-watered their fields.

The IRAS team states that the system will help reduce agricultural water waste by about 30 percent, cut fuel use by 45 percent, save S115 million yearly, and lower carbon emissions by 300,000 tons per year.

IRAS is an example of how global cooperation and the sharing of important data among nations can help improve food security, water management, and environmental protection around the world. “In addition to being affordable and convenient for farmers, the method can help the world become more water-efficient and energy-efficient in growing food,” said Faisal Hossain, leader of IRAS.

The IRAS team completed its first nationwide effort in June 2023, after working with staff from Bangladesh’s Department of Agricultural Extension and Agro-Meteorological Information Service to set up the system. Faisal Hossain and his colleagues hope to broaden the reach of IRAS in the future, and apply it to other crops that demand large amounts of water, like sugar cane. “We believe that this affordable tool will be applied to any area where we know what crop is being grown and what their crop water demand characteristics are,” he said.

9 . Books That Celebrate Diverse Holidays and Traditions

It’s important to remember there are a diverse set of holidays available to explore. Below are a few books that help introduce children to different holiday cultures and traditions.

Too Many Tamales by Gary Soto, illustrated by Ed Martinez

While helping her mother with Christmas celebration, Maria is tempted to try on her mother’s diamond ring. After getting caught up in the joy of the holiday and playing with her cousins, Maria realizes the ring is missing! That’s when she and her cousins come up with a plan to eat all of the tamales, in hopes of finding the ring.

Together for Kwanzaa by Juwanda G. Ford, illustrated by Shelly Hehenberger

This is a story about a little girl named Kayla who wants to see her older brother Khari come home so they can celebrate Kwanzaa together as a family. Khari is stuck at college when a snowstorm hits and his car breaks down. Will he make it home in time for Kwanzaa?

A Child’s Christmas in Wales by Dylan Thomas, illustrated by Trina Schart Hyman

This book is a funny, nostalgic tale of Christmas Eve afternoon through Christmas night in Wales, and is full of unique imagery and poetic prose. It will arouse a sense of familiarity for some young readers while introducing them to different aspects of Christmas traditions.

We Are Grateful: Otsaliheliga by Traci Sorell, illustrated by Frane Lessac

The word otsaliheliga is used by members of the Cherokee Nation to express gratitude. This is an amazing story that describes a journey through the seasons with a modern-day Cherokee family. Cherokee history and traditions are also woven into the story in a very kid-friendly way.