2 . Metaura Pro claims to be the world’s first wearable air-conditioning device capable of constantly blowing cold air to keep the wearer cool.

Conventional wearable cooling systems only circulate the surrounding air, and thus don’t do a very good job of cooling people down. The stronger the wind blows, the hotter you get. This is definitely not what you want during those hot summer days. Metaura Pro, on the other hand, relies on a cooling solution to produce genuinely cold air that is 7 degrees Fahrenheit (华氏的) cooler than that of the surrounding area, in fan mode, and up to 18 degrees Fahrenheit cooler than the surrounding air, in cooling mode. The device has a smart app and relies on artificial intelligence to regulate air temperature.

Metaura Pro is driven by a powerful motor and its cooling modules are made up of 26 lightweight flat objects that wrap around the wearer’s neck and help to reduce heat. The motor is linked to a high-speed fan at the back of the device which also drives away some of that warm air around the neck. The device also has a VC plate, which has a liquid-cooled, heat-equalizing mechanism, efficiently creating a temperature differential between hot and cold temperatures.

“What sets Metaura Pro apart from the competition is that it produces genuinely cold air lower than the surrounding temperature, refreshing you during those dog days of summer,” the Metaura Pro Kickstarter crowdfunding page reads.

Metaura Pro not only supplies a cooling function, but also has the capacity for heating as well in winter, it can be used to warm your body to a comfortable temperature, when the surrounding air feels cold.

The device intelligently monitors itself, so when you take it off, it recognizes that it is no longer in use and will automatically shut off and switch to standby mode to save power consumption. Metaura Pro wearable collar is powered by a chargeable battery that can provide only 3 hours of cooling on a single charge. The device weighs 435 grams, which is not heavy, but definitely noticeable.

Following the barbecue-induced travel craze to the city of Zibo in East China, Chinese social media has once again highlighted the next internet-famous city worthy of     1     (explore).

This time it’s Tianshui, a low-key city in China’s Gansu province that     2     (take) the spotlight recently. It has attracted considerable attention     3     food enthusiasts and social media influencers online,     4     (celebrate) the city’s iconic dish of hot pot.

Known as Tianshui Malatang, which     5     (literal) means spicy and hot, the local dish is popular for its large portion of skewered meat, vegetables,     6     hand-made potato noodles in a pot of boiling broth (肉汤).

Two food bloggers, with over 3 million followers in their account on the popular Chinese Weibo,     7     (be) among the influencers praising the deliciousness of Tianshui Malatang. Their vlogs show eager food enthusiasts lining up on the streets, many of     8     traveled from cities far away.

Dong Liangyan, 29, from Daqing in Heilongjiang province,     9     (locate) more than 2,000 km away from Tianshui, told Xinhua that she was absolutely delighted     10     (enjoy) the local delicacy.

4 . It was snowing hard. Gus Kiebel, a county wildlife officer, was driving home from work when he ________ the pair in the flash of his headlights. The father-to-be scanned the roadside so that his struggling ________ might rest safely for the night. He looked over at her ________. They needed a warm ________ from the bitter wind.

Gus parked his truck and ________ the animals. He stretched out his hands to the beagles (比格犬), which made no effort to ________. Then he dialed the number from the dogs’ tags (标牌). A man answered and immediately grew ________ when Gus told him why he was calling. “I gave those dogs away,” the man said. “They’re not mine anymore.” Then he hung up.

Obviously, these beagles were ________. Then he brought the tired beagles home. As a boy, owning beagles had been his ________, but keeping this pair was out of the question now—the Kiebels already had a family dog. So he ________ the League for Animal Welfare to drop them off—on one ________. “I’m not signing the dogs over to you if you’re going to ________ them,” he said. The shelter workers promised him they’d keep the couple together.

In the following days, Gus phoned the shelter ________ to check up on them. Soon, the beagles were adopted as a pair, to a loving family. It’s a simple story, but it ________ the best of our nature. And when kindness weighs more than ________, it becomes the greatest miracle of all.

5 . Song Yingxing was a Chinese scientist and encyclopedist (百科全书编纂者) who lived during the late Ming Dynasty. The British biochemist and historian Joseph Needham called him “The Diderot of China”.

Song Yingxing was born in Fengxin county in Jiangxi province in 1587. He took part in the second highest imperial (科学) examinations in Beijing six times, but failed to become a jinshi. After that, he decided to give up taking exams and turned to the practical knowledge of natural science. Then Song Yingxing spent four years teaching his students in his hometown.

Although it was a job like teaching, it was a very important stage in Song Yingxing’s life, because many of his works were written here. And Song Yingxing had been living in a secluded (隐居的) life in the past ten years. Because he didn’t want to be an official, Song Yingxing lived a very poor life in his later years.

He was the author of Tian Gong Kai Wu, an encyclopedia that covered a wide variety of technical subjects. As Joseph Needham has observed, the vast amount of accurately drawn illustrations in this encyclopedia dwarfed the amount provided in previous Chinese encyclopedias, making it a valuable written work in the history of Chinese literature. Tian Gong Kai Wu records all aspects of technology up to the mid-Ming period. The book constitutes a complete system of science and technology, and provides a systematic summary of ancient Chinese technology, the experience accumulated by China in agriculture, and China’s achievements in technology.

Many of the production techniques described in the book are still in use today. At the same time, Tian Gong Kai Wu broke from Chinese tradition by rarely referencing previous written work. It was instead written in a style strongly suggestive of personal experience. The book was translated into Japanese, French, English, German, Italian, and Russian, and was widely circulated in Europe and Japan.

In addition, Song Yingxing had made great achievements in many fields. His research was very extensive. In physics, he studied the occurrence of sound and, finally concluded that sound is transmitted in the air.

6 . When looking for some vacation ideas to spread out and get some time and space to yourself, check out these great resorts (度假胜地) options.

Located in Punta Cana, this family-friendly vacation at an all-inclusive resort offers something for everyone in your party. Parents can enjoy relaxing by one of the resort’s swim-up bars in an infinity pool or head out for some deep-sea fishing. Kids, meanwhile, can head over to the kids’ club for a number of activities. Plus, all of the drinks and food across the 14 restaurants and bars is included.

This resort has become the Caribbean’s popular go-to when it comes to all-inclusive family vacations that provide great value since there’s so much to do for guests of all ages. There’s a 45,000-square-foot water park, 24 restaurants, unlimited PADI-certified scuba diving and water sports, a 12-mile beach, a spa, 10 pools—whew!

If you live in the city and want to get back to nature, this luxury farm over nearly 11,000 acres in California’s Santa Ynez Valley is a perfect fit for a family. All that wide-open space means activities like horseback riding, scenic cycling, hiking, fishing, kayaking and, for the body-and-spirit-minded traveler in your group, yoga.

The 20,000-acre community includes a nature preserve with walking trails, but the real stars of the show here are the over 300 species of birds. The resort’s resident naturalist takes families on walks to Bird Island, sharing a history of the area. Plus, kids will love the kayak tours that get up close to the dolphins that live there year-round.