2 . Tropical ( 热带的) rainforests are disappearing at an alarming rate, and according to a new report by Rainforest Foundation Norway, humans are to blame. The world’s dependence on coal, farming, beans, palm oil and mining has resulted in two-thirds of Earth’s tropical rainforests being completely destroyed, and the remaining ecosystems being put closer to a tipping point.

Tropical rainforests once covered 14.5 million square kilometers of Earth’s surface, but now, just one-third of that remains undamaged. Of the original area tropical rainforests once occupied, 34% is completely gone and 30% is suffering from damage. All that remains is roughly 9.5 million square kilometers, and 45% of that is in a degraded (恶化) state, the report says.

Researchers blame human consumption for the loss. While agriculture has always been a driving factor of rainforest loss, the report said that energy consumption, international trade and the production of beans and palm oil, logging and mining have been the largest threats (威胁) over the past century. A significant number of US products rely on resources from tropical rainforests. The country heavily relies on palm oil, rubber and cocoa, all of which come from forests around the world. Often, these resources are harvested from illegally destroyed lands.

Tropical rainforests are home to more than half of the Earth’s biodiversity and have more carbon in living organisms than any other ecosystem. In addition to supporting significant animal life, tropical rainforests are also necessary for slowing down global warming. “These unique ecosystems are suffering from constant abuse, through our bottomless appetite for land and resources,” said Anders Krogh, the author of the report. “We expect that upcoming UN climate and biodiversity summits provide specific targets and measures to protect tropical rainforests.”

The researchers also believe that the loss of tropical rainforests puts the whole world at the risk of future diseases. “Huge deforestation (毁林) is violating nature’s natural virus protection systems,” Krogh said. “The outbreak of COVID-19 should bring rainforest protection to the top of the agenda of all policy makers and world leaders concerned about preventing the outbreak of new diseases.”

4 . It was an afternoon in August. I was just short of turning 18. I stood in front of a six story, red brick building. It was to be my new home for the next several years. It was my first day of college, and I was very excited. I had two suitcases and a bag with me. Everything I thought I would need was packed in them. I carried them up the five flights of stairs to my dorm and wondered what life had in store for me –a young girl.

It was another afternoon in August. I was just short of turning 42. My daughter was 18, and we were standing in front of the same building at the same college that I had gone to years before. I smiled as I helped her carry her things up to her room, but I also noticed that we were making more than one trip. All the students seemed to have much more stuff (东西) than I did all those years ago. Yet, it didn't seem to make things any better for them. In fact, they looked more stressed. As I threw down another box of my daughter's stuff, I wondered what life had in store for her.

Last night I had a dream that I'd had many times before. I was back in that same dorm with my belongings piled on my bed searching for my course book and wondering what classes I would take. I often wondered what this dream meant, but when I woke up this morning, it became crystal clear to me. We are sometimes teachers in this life, but we are always students in it. We are here to learn to love ourselves and everyone as ourselves. It takes a lifetime. The stuff we carry with us through this life doesn't matter at all. It is the stuff we carry inside of us when we leave this life that counts.

6 . Every superhero, no matter how small, needs a cape. That was Robyn Rosenberger’s motivation when she started sewing superhero capes for kids with cancer, heart defects, and other serious diseases. It all began when she was making a cape as a birthday present for her nephew. Rosenberger heard of a girl named Brenna who was battling a potentially deadly skin condition called harlequin ichthyosis. Anyone suffering from what she was going through had to be tough. “I had an aha moment (顿悟),” Rosenberger says. “Brenna was a superhero! She needed a cape.” So Rosenberger sent her one, and Brenna’s mother was delighted.

Rosenberger found ten more kids online and sent out ten more capes. Before long, she quit her job at a software company to dedicate herself full time to tinysuperheroes.com, a website where people can buy hand-made capes for brave kids facing illness and disability.

Since 2013, Rosenberger and her small paid staff have sent more than 12,000 handmade capes to kids in all 50 states and 15 other countries. The capes come in pink, blue, purple, or red and can be decorated with the child’s initials or specialized patches, including a heart, a rocket, or a lightning bolt. One recipient was eight-month-old Gabe, who was born with a cleft palate (腭裂), which causes distinct facial features. Rosenberger sent him a red cape with a bright yellow G in the center. It was a hit.

Gabe is now a fixture on the company’s social media posts. “The Tiny Superhero community has been a wonderful connection to have,” says Gabe’s mom, Kate Glocke. In fact, two years later, “We still bring Gabe’s cape with us to every hospital appointment.”

8 . Today we know Antarctica as an extreme environment containing ice and snow. But new research provides evidence that the area had a rainforest in the past.

The researchers collected a piece of Earth sediment from under the seafloor off the coast of Antarctica. In the sediment, they discovered forest material that was estimated to be about 90 million years old. This would have been in the Cretaceous Period, when dinosaurs were the main land animals. The sediment was removed by scientists on the research icebreaker RV Polarstern in the Amundsen Sea near Pine Island Glacier.

Johann Klages is a geologist with the Alfred Wegener Institute, Helmholtz Center for Polar and Marine Research in Germany. He was the lead writer of a study on the findings, published in the journal Nature. He said the sediment was collected from a depth of about 30 meters below the ocean floor. Klages said an examination showed that the material didn't form in the ocean.

The researchers estimate that the area — about 900 kilometers from the South Pole — had average yearly temperatures of about 12 to 13 degrees Celsius. During the warmest summer months, average temperatures likely reached between 20 and 25 degrees Celsius. The soil included fine dirt particles and hard clay, as well as substances linked to at least 65 different kinds of plants, the study found. Klages added that the plants included trees, ferns and flowering plants. While no animal remains were found, Klages said there were likely dinosaurs, flying reptiles and many insects in the environment.

The research represents new evidence of the major climate changes Earth has experienced in the past — and is currently undergoing today. The soil in the sediment dates back to the planet’s warmest period of the past 140 million years, with sea level about 170 meters higher than today. The researchers said that the rainforest environment in Antarctica was especially surprising because each year, the area experiences a four-month polar night when there is no sunlight to fuel plant life. Klages said no ice sheets were present during the time, but seasonal snowfall was likely.

9 . One of the most important things that has happened to me occurred long before I was aware of it. As the story goes, I was three days old and Mom was singing “The Name Game” song to me: “Christine Bo-Bean-Banana-Fanna-Fo-Feen.” By day four, I was given a new name — Christine-Bo-Bean, or just Bo-Bee to my mother. Now, I am Bo to her and close friends.

Why is this nickname(昵称)so important to me? I once read a book with a passage about True Names which explains that when a person’s true name is spoken, she has a distinct aura(光环)around her. Although I have been Bo to my mother all my life, I recently discovered that my true name is not on my birth certificate; it’s the name that is as unique and memorable as I am.

People usually know me as Christine. They still see me as a quiet, bookish child. They don’t know who I am now. My most recent hopes, fears, goals, dreams and opinions escape their notice; it is easier to think of me as I was. In their minds, they have a box labeled “Christine” in which I fit neatly, and as Christine, I was content with the perfect packaging.

Those who call me Bo or Bo-Bee really know me. They remember who I was and realize I have changed. Bo is a tight squeeze in the old “Christine” boxes. The Bo I am is ever-changing, ever-growing and ever-learning.

When I was Christine, I was quiet, and easily scared. I feared groups, meeting new people and sharing my opinions. I was more comfortable with a book than my best friend. As Christine, I thought everyone was better than I was.

As Bo, I still love my books, but I want to discuss them. As Bo, my dream is to live where I can experience new things and meet new people. I dream about being alone on a stage lit by a single spotlight; I have that confidence now. I am equal to those I once saw as better than me.

A name shouldn’t make such a difference, but sometimes, when a person finds his or her True Name, they develop a new shine visible to friends, family and especially themselves.

I can’t always be Bo. Sometimes exposing myself is still scary and I feel too nervous; I want to hide in those old boxes. Mostly, however, I am ready for the world. So, just call me Bo.