1 . Have you ever heard about Black Friday and Cyber Monday? Surely, they are all about finding the best deals on holiday gifts for yourself and family members. And have you heard about GivingTuesday? Here is something about it!

GivingTuesday is observed annually on the Tuesday after Thanksgiving, which encourages people to help those in need by making financial donations or doing good in their local community. The “Global Day of Giving” was started in 2012 by New York City nonprofit 92nd Street Y and the United Nations Foundation.

Unlike Black Friday, GivingTuesday serves a more altruistic purpose. In its first year, the movement brought in almost $10 million for charities, and things have only improved since. In 2019, many GivingTuesday social media campaigns worldwide helped raise an amazing $ 1.9 billion from 27 million donors! Over the past five years, many higher education institutions have also been using the Tuesday after Thanksgiving to ask alumni for donations. In 2019, the University of Michigan, which calls it Blueday, received 5887 gifts totaling over $4 million, while Pennsylvania State University raised $710 000 to benefit over 85 University programs.

Though donating money certainly helps, there are many other ways to support the great cause, especially during the COVID-19 pandemic. You can video tutor kids struggling with online learning, or team up with an adult to get groceries or medications for an elderly neighbor. Alternatively, call on your peers to help you with a service project that addresses an issue close to your heart, or pick one from the several ideas suggested on the GivingTuesday website. You can also donate your gently-used clothes and toys to local shelters, or mail a handwritten note to a grandparent or a friend you miss seeing.

What are you going to do to make a positive difference in your community on GivingTuesday? Let us know by adding your comments below!

2 . Do you have a prized stuffed animal from your childhood? Is it still in your apartment? If so, you’re not alone. 60% of small children have Teddies and other comfort objects, and up to 35% of adults!

Conventional wisdom from the 1970s suggested kids depending on comfort objects somehow lacked secure attachment to their mothers, and that this dependence would threaten their proper development into well-adjusted adults.

However, not too long ago, studies began to show that comfort objects don’t threaten children’s mental health, and may indeed be developmentally advantageous. Children with comfort objects are less shy and more focused than those without them. This is probably because with their presence, children feel braver and less stressed in unfamiliar situations.

Even newer research shows only when a toy is his or her comfort object do children anthropomorphize it. That is, children don’t really mistakenly believe that all objects around them have inside lives. Having an emotional attachment to the comfort object causes children to think of it as a human-like friend, who they can practice telling stories to and share joy and sorrow with. Sometimes they even think from the perspective of this unnatural friend.

Comfort objects are not just soft things for children to grab when they feel sad or lonely. They mean something special to them. So, far from being “wacky toddler (学步儿童) behavior”, choosing a comfort object and treating it as a sacred part of daily rituals is actually extremely sophisticated behavior on the part of small children. If you have a comfort animal, or meet a kid who has one, let the cuddles (拥抱) begin.

3 . Voters in Colorado narrowly approved an initiative (计划), setting the stage for the return of gray wolves, which were wiped out in this area by the 1940s. This is the first time that a state has reintroduced an animal like this.

The Colorado Parks and Wildlife department will lead the effort to establish a sustainable population of gray wolves in the western part of the state, beginning in 2022 or 2023. The Southern Rocky Mountains, where there used to be a lot of them, contain millions of acres of suitable habitat that could support several hundred wolves or more, biologists say.

However, some say it’s unwise to leave the question to voters. “State biologists have previously declined to introduce wolves. There's a reason it's never been done before.” says Shawn Martini, spokesperson for Coloradans for Protecting Wildlife, noting that most supporters are from urban areas and they don't have to live alongside the animal, unlike people living in the countryside. Farmers and hunters don't favor the initiative, either. Farmers worry wolves will kill their cattle while hunters worry they will lose elk (驼鹿) to the predators.

On the other hand, according to Jonathan Proctor, a conservationist with the Defenders of Wildlife, reintroducing wolves will restore Colorado's natural balance. They help thin out sick animals, maintaining healthy populations of deer and elk. The remains of wolf kills also provide food for “eaters of the dead”, including wolverines, eagles, and bears. He also emphasizes the experience of living with wolves in other places, like the Northern Rockies, has shown that wolves are not the threat people sometimes make them out to be. Reintroduction program biologists promise to make it a priority to work with people living alongside wolves, providing training and resources to keep the wolves out of the farms in the first place. And a program will be funded to pay farmers for their lost cattle.

4 . Tips for Your Best Visit to Legoland California

•Stay Close

Four hotels are within walking distance of the main gate, the newest of which resembles a medieval castle. Guests get an hour of early access to the theme park.

•Use the App

Not only does Legoland Mobile App function as a map, but shows relatively accurate wait time for every ride and special deals for park shops. You can use it to purchase or upgrade your tickets too.

•Go Fishing

The Sea Life Aquarium is here to impress you with kinds of fishes, rays, sharks, reptiles, and amphibians. Extra admission is required.

•Take a Class

In the Imagination Zone, kids above nine and grown-ups can sign up for free classes to build Lego robots. Younger kids can have fun building race cars and testing them on tracks.

•See a Show

Legoland California rolls out various live entertainment experiences throughout the day. Children particularly will love a 15-minute show where human actors sing and dance their way through a plot from Lego Friends.

In a word, Legoland California is definitely a must-see place. Visit www.legoland.com/California to plan your trip NOW. We're always at your service.

6 . China's Yungang Grottoes (石窟) will complete the scanning of all the caves in five years, paving the way for the creation of digital versions that can withstand weathering and other real-world damage.

So far, the UNESCO World Heritage Site in Shanxi Province has completed three-dimensional scans of one-third of its Buddhist grottoes, according to the Yungang Grottoes Research Institute. “We're racing against time,” said Ning Bo, director of the institute's digitalization office, “Weathering is like cancer to grottoes, eating away at the sculptures year by year. Few technologies can prevent such progressive damage.”

Using three-dimensional laser (激光) scanning and multiplanar (多平面) reconstruction, the institute is working to capture the shapes, colors and other fine details of the grottoes and create millimeter-level digital archives for future study and preservation. “We hope to preserve the grottoes in digital form as much as possible, so people in the future will still have access to the information even if the grottoes fade away.” Ning said, adding that the digitalization will also allow the public to “visit” the grottoes more easily on their computer screens.

The digitalization project, which began in 2003 at the grottoes, still faces challenges posed by the caves' enormous sizes, complicated structures and exquisite sculptures, according to the institute. “The Yungang Grottoes were built into a mountain, and so our team is actually scanning structures as huge as a mountain. Besides, the inner structures vary wildly from exotic domes to traditional Chinese architecture.” said the director.

The Yungang Grottoes, located in the city of Datong, has 45 major caves and more than 59,000 stone statues. With a grotto complex stretching about 1 km from east to west, it is one of the largest ancient grottoes in the country.

7 . With 60 miles of canals and nearly 7,000 buildings dating from the 18th century or earlier, Amsterdam is one of Europe’s best preserved cities. Here are some of our favorites.

The Concertgebouw

A free classical concert in one of the world’s greatest concert halls? Sounds too good to be true, but every Wednesday at lunchtime that’s exactly what’s on offer at the Concertgebouw. The latest series just started up again this month and will run through June. You can pick up a free ticket (one per person) on the day of the show starting at 11:30 a.m.; the concert takes place from 12:30 p.m. to 1 p.m.

Rijksmuseum Gardens

Take a walk in the beautiful formal gardens of the Rijksmuseum, which are dotted with fascinating artworks. There’s a life-size chessboard, a fountain by contemporary Danish artist Jeppe Hein, and post-war climbing frames by architect Aldo van Eyck. The gardens also host sculpture exhibitions — currently there are 21 sculptures on show by the Spanish artist Joan Miró until October 11.

The Muziektheater

This important opera, dance and music venue has free weekly lunchtime concerts by top performers on Tuesdays from 12:30 p.m. to 1 p.m. in the entrance hall, from September to May. Once or twice a month, the concert is followed by a free tour of the theatre — check the website for details.

Central Library

At the Netherlands’ biggest library, the Centrale Bibliotheek, you can read the international papers for free, and while Wi-Fi isn’t completely free, you can purchase 30 minutes for little more than a dollar by using one of the ticket machines. Upstairs on the 7th floor there is a café with a balcony that boasts wonderful city views.

8 . When I was a kid, my sister and I would fight all the time over nearly everything. But as we grew older, our bond strengthened by sharing secrets, offering advice and trading clothes. Having a sister by my side while growing up taught me many lessons about the unique bond.

And now, thanks to an 8-year long study that’s making the rounds on the Internet again, science is confirming what I know is true. In the study, researchers discovered that having an older or younger sister can help ease the anxiety for kids between the ages of 10 and 14 years. They also found that people with sisters can “learn how to make up and to have control over their emotions again, which are skills that undoubtedly serve children well.

The revival of this study actually comes on the heels of another newer study, which shows that it’s not just the older kids and parents who influence and shape children as they grow. It turns out that younger siblings(兄弟姐妹) do too, and what’s more, they may also give their older siblings a greater chance of developing empathy (同情).

The Canadian study followed 452 pairs of siblings, all between a year-and-a-half and 4 years old. The researchers found that having a younger sibling increased the older sibling's level of empathy.

This research confirms that sisters are pretty amazing in making the world a much lovely place. As the mom of two boys, I often wonder what kinds of lessons they will learn from their younger sister. Perhaps they will be the same lessons I learned from mine that cooler heads always win. This study gives me hope that all those endless arguments between my kids may actually be laying the groundwork for conflict-settlement skills.