1 . An ordinary trip turned dramatic (激动人心的) for 18-year-old Justin Gavin, and extremely fortunate for a young family. Walking down the street, he saw something that made him_________. A small SUV drove past him, and it was _________in flames (火焰). His heart beat fast,_________when he saw children inside the car.

Drivers were honking (按喇叭) and getting out of their cars to get the_________of the woman driver. However, it quickly became_________that she could not stop the car.

The officials had already received several calls about a car on fire with a woman and children_________inside. However, without an officer on site, Gavin immediately went into action.

He ran after the car down the street to help the family_________from the burning car. “I’m yelling ‘Stop the car! Your car is on fire!” he said. Gavin finally_________the car when it came to a full stop. Without_________, he helped the mother out of the driver’s__________first. And then with the flames__________, he pulled three children out of the back seat. The flames quickly flooded the__________moments later.

Gavin said, “It’s kind of__________because I didn’t know whether I was able to get everyone out__________. Luckily, I did it.” Afterwards the mother credited the__________with saving her family.

2 . Children may not be putting coins in piggy banks for much longer. With the move towards a cashless society, pocket money is going digital.

To reflect “the change”, many mobile budgeting (预算) apps for children have appeared worldwide, such as GoHenry, Osper and Gimi. These apps offer a simple money management service to children, often for a monthly fee paid by the parents. Parents can add money to children’s accounts, set limits and monitor transactions (交易). Children can choose to save their money or spend it using a prepaid card.

These apps aim to teach young children financial concepts (概念), such as budgeting, interest rates and income. For example, the Swedish app Gimi — 1.2 million users globally — has virtual savings jars where children can deposit money. Parents can pay children interest as they save. There is also a prepaid card that is currently available in Sweden only, but is expected to be launched elsewhere in Europe.

Philip Haglund, CEO of Gimi, believes the app can teach children responsible spending habits. “You don’t become better at money management just because you have a degree in economics. It’s more about the attitude and the relationship you have with parents’ money when you’re 6 to 12 years old,” he says.

But Catherine Winter, Managing Director of Financial Capability at The London Institute of Banking &Finance, warns people that while digital tools can help, there needs to be a more organized approach to financial education. The area should “have regular, designed classroom time and ideally should be taught as an independent subject”, she says. “Children would then have the right understanding to get the most out of both the apps and their money.”

6 . Robots used to be found only in science fiction. In the 1960s, the animated (动画的) space-age family the Jetsons had a robotic maid who could do household chores. In the 2014 movie Big Hero 6, the robot Baymax could diagnose and heal illnesses instantly. In real life robots function in many manufacturing and household situations. In the field of medicine, robot patients help train doctors and nurses by pretending they have a variety of health conditions. Now robots are finding a home in the food service industry.

The global pandemic and resulting economic crisis have created a lack of restaurant workers. Since restaurants don’t have enough workers, the remaining staff must work harder. Regardless, customers face longer wait times, fewer menu choices and higher prices. Some businessmen are lending a robotic hand in the form of server robots. These robots are not exactly modeled after Rosey, the Jetsons’ robotic household servant, but they are pretty clever.

Server robots come in several different varieties. Many have a design that looks like a rolling cart. One model named Bella even has a cute cat-like face. Many are fairly short and shaped like R2D2 of Star Wars fame. They, designed to deliver dishes, are also just the right height for customers to easily reach them. Restaurant owners are finding server robots ideal for performing repetitive tasks, however many there are. They can not only deliver delicious food to hungry customers, but also fetch back dirty dishes at the end of the meal.

Perhaps you’re wondering about issues such as the cost and safety factors. Concerning the price, a server robot costs from a few thousand to several thousand dollars. And in 2021, a restaurant even rented one for as low as $15 per day. Regarding safety, special sensors on the robots keep them from crashing into customers. Because there aren’t enough restaurant workers, filling positions with these robotic servers is easy. Don’t be surprised if you see one rolling up to your table soon.

8 . Tongai Matandirotya, who works at Brass Bell Restaurant near Cape Town, left behind his own safety to dive into the cold Atlantic ocean to rescue a mother and daughter swept off the pier (长堤) by a sudden wave.

It was a relatively calm day in the fishing village of Kalk Bay. Several people were walking by the window of Brass Bell looking out to the water. Then the scene changed.

“I saw this wave come over the harbor and cover the people, dragging them into the ocean. I immediately ran outside, undressed myself, and dived into the water because I saw a child go in as well.” Tongai said.

37-year-old Clair Gardiner and her 8-year-old daughter Arya were the people swept away by the wave. Gardiner knew they were being pulled into the water as soon as the wave rushed over them, and she managed to wrap her arms around little Arya.

By now Tongai had dropped the drink he was pouring, taken off his belt and jumped into the water—followed by a tourist unnamed by the news reports. By then the ferocious waves, even just a few meters from shore, had pulled Gardiner and Arya apart. Tongai used his belt to rescue Arya who wasn’t able to stay afloat by herself.

“I recently went to the restaurant to thank him,” Gardiner told local news. “My daughter recognized him immediately, and we all embraced each other. We are so thankful to Tongai and the tourist man who risked their lives to save ours; we’ll forever be grateful to them.”

Tongai noticed he had been badly scratched up by the concrete wall of the pier, but he didn’t care about it. Brass Bell congratulated their man on Facebook, saying they were “so proud” of him, with several comments adding reminders to “tip him well”.