1 . Scientists in Brazil have developed a vaccine (疫苗) that prevents addicts from feeling pleasure from the illegal drug, cocaine (可卡因), making the addiction stop right away.

The vaccine, Calixcoca, works by stimulating the user’s immune system to produce antibodies (抗体) when cocaine is detected in the body. These antibodies attach themselves to cocaine in the blood, making it physically too large to pass into the brain’s reward system, where it can make the user feel pleasure.

Different from the failed U. S. vaccine, Calixcoca uses artificial components produced in a lab rather than natural ones, which makes it cheaper to produce and easier to store since the vaccine does not need to be stored at low temperatures.

Calixcoca has so far proven effective in testing on animals, producing significant levels of antibodies against cocaine and few side effects. It also protected unborn baby rats against cocaine, researchers found, suggesting it could be used in humans to protect the unborn babies from being damaged by their mother’s addiction. It is hoped that the introduction of such vaccines will be a significant tool in preventing deaths from cocaine use.

The vaccine is now set to enter the final stage of trials: testing on humans. The first tests on humans have had a 72% success rate in clinical settings. Given that the current treatment for cocaine addiction is only effective in 20% of patients, “anything that is more than 20% effective is already a lot,” said Garcia, a mental health doctor. He also emphasized that, while the vaccine shows promising results, it won’t be a cure-all for everyone. It targets people struggling with addiction, especially “those who are just off cocaine and want to stay that way”. Ideally, it would be used for patients during important phases of their recovery, like when they leave the drug addiction treatment centre.

2 . Artificial Intelligence (AI) geolocation (互联网定位技术) solutions are changing the way researchers track and monitor wildlife, enabling more powerful conservation efforts. These systems use advanced sensors, satellite imagery, and machine learning algorithms (算法) to gather real-time data on animal movements, habitat preferences, and migration patterns.     1    

Traditional tracking methods often rely on non-automatic tracking or inconvenient necklace-like systems, which may cause stress and discomfort to the animals.     2     The devices can work as tags and the camera traps can be set up remotely, which decreases human impact on wildlife.

In addition, AI-powered devices collect and analyze data precisely. Through their assistance, scientists can gain insights into habitat choices and evaluate the effect of global warming on wild animal locations.     3     For example, by analyzing the collected data, conservationists can promote targeted habitat restoration efforts according to the patterns and connections they discovered with the help of AI geolocation devices.

    4     By monitoring animals’ behavioral changes in real-time, researchers can quickly detect signs of environmental issues. Sudden changes in an animal’s movements could indicate threats or problems. Researchers can then respond immediately, potentially saving the animal’s life.

Sharing geolocation data through online platforms can also help raise awareness about protecting endangered species.     5     This help them feel more connected to the issues wildlife face in habitats. The bond promotes a sense of responsibility among individuals and encourages them to contribute to wildlife conservation efforts through various means, such as donations, volunteer work, and so on.

3 . Hearing live music may be more emotional than listening to a recording of the same tune because it brings about greater activity in the part of the brain linked to processing emotions:

Sascha Frühholz at the University of Zurich in Switzerland and his team composed 12 pieces of music, each lasting 30 seconds. Half were written with the aim of expressing negative emotions, such as sadness and anger. These were slower, less harmonious and included more minor chords (和弦) than the remaining songs, written to arouse positive emotions.

The researchers then employed 27 people who weren’t musically trained, to listen to these 12 pieces twice — once performed by a live pianist, which the participants heard through a speaker, and once as a recording. The order they listened to them was randomly assigned, with 30 seconds of silence in between. People didn’t know when they were hearing a recording or live music.

While listening to the music, the participants lay in an MRI scanner (扫描仪) so the team could monitor their brain activity. The pianist then adapted the volume and speed of the piece according to the brain activity. For example, if someone was showing little activity in response to a positive piece of music, the pianist might play louder.

“Recorded music is not adaptive to now a listener is responding, but live pianists often adapt the music to the audience to get the best response from them,” says Frühholz.

Live performances of both the negative and positive pieces led to increased brain activity in the left amygdala, the region of the brain that is strongly linked to assigning sensory stimuli, such as sounds, to certain emotions.

The recorded tunes caused much less, and more inconsistent, activity in the left amygdala. This matched how emotive the participants rated each piece of music after the experiment.

The findings show that live music strengthens our emotional response, probably due to its free-flowing and active nature.

4 . Teen volunteer opportunities are the best way to learn the values of responsibility and enhance problem-solving skills. Here are a few volunteer opportunities for you to take up.

Animal shelters and homeless shelters are the best places for animal lovers. A typical day volunteering at an animal shelter would involve helping with the adoption process, feeding animals and cleaning up after animals.

Teens can associate with a local environmental organization for a beach preservation. This is a great way to learn about ecology and contribute to its improvement in a hands-on manner. The opportunity involves outdoor activities and is a good platform to connect with green advocates.

A job as a ‘Counselor-in-Training’ is a great fit for teens. It teaches them organization skills by training under experts. Teenagers can learn communication skills and benefit from the real-time feedback from children and parents. It is also an excellent opportunity to learn outdoor support skills, such as CPR and first aid.

Local hospitals are always on the lookout for a helping hand. Whether it’s chatting with residents, greeting visitors or transporting patients to the cafeteria, a little help goes a long way! A few hospitals may have an age limit and require volunteers to get basic training and commit their time each week.

A plush toy named “Happy Loong” has recently captured the hearts of visitors to the Gansu Provincial Museum in northwest China.

Modeled after    1     Ming Dynasty (1368-1644) gold decoration in the shape of a loong or Chinese dragon, over 1,000 of these chubby and grinning loong toys were sold in the first week after they    2     (appear) earlier this year. This innovative approach to museum     3     (souvenir) reflects a broader trend of making cultural products more appealing to young Chinese museum-goers,     4     (drive) up the income across various museums.

Cui Youxin, head of the     5     (create) cultural product center at the Gansu Provincial Museum, emphasized that only those deeply     6     (root) in the soil of Chinese history and culture can stand the test of time. In addition to “Happy Loong”, the Gansu Provincial Museum offers stuffed toys inspired     7     the flying apsaras (飞天) of the Mogao Grottoes and the bronze galloping horse from the Easter Han Dynasty (25-220), all of     8     combine rich history with Gen-Z appeal.

China’s central economic work conference in December 2023 proposed that the country should     9     (active) develop new consumption growth points such as China-chic goods in 2024. Looking ahead, the museum souvenir market in China     10     (expect) to continue growing.

6 . A new trend has popped up in China with many young people abandoning brand (品牌) names to create makeshift handbags out of things like reusable grocery bags and other materials. One example is the Shenzhen bag, which includes canvas (帆布) bags, paper bags, milk tea packages that people carry around in Guangdong Province.

Makeshift handbags like the “Shenzhen bag” are also common among young people in big cities like Beijing, Shanghai, and Hangzhou. People find the bags practical, wearable and fashionable, and they can be carried on the shoulder or the back. This emerging trend reveals a new attitude to consumption as young people in China begin to pursue a simple and shared life, with consumers no longer blindly pursuing brand names as a status (身份) symbol, but advocating a simple and low-carbon lifestyle. In addition to the handbags, and regardless of their monthly incomes, many young people are living more casually, in line with a “good enough mentality”. Loose T-shirts, Crocs, and canvas bags are basically standard mode.

“Consumers today are becoming more mature and rational. They are pursuing smarter consumption through careful consideration and calculation to find the cheapest; most practical, cost-effective way of shopping,” says. Wang Ning, a sociology professor at Nanjing’s Southeast University.

Economists believe that China’s Generation Z no longer blindly pursues brands and luxury goods or buys things for brand name and status. Instead, they pay more attention to their actual needs, quality, and experience of buying, and prefer sharing and secondhand purchases. They also advocate environmental protection and sustainable consumption.

Price-aware Chinese consumers have also begun to place a greater emphasis on their inner selves. Driven by rational consumption, many young people no longer save to buy a brand-name bag, but for self-improvement.

The new handbag trend has also created business opportunities. Reusing packaging used for food brands as handbags results in mobile advertising for the associated brands, and the phenomenon of the “Shenzhen Bag” has also benefited paper bag companies.

8 . Virtual Field Trips are designed for small groups of students, including school groups, homeschool students, and afterschool settings.

Stick the Landing: Engineering Series

Over the course of 3 sessions, use the steps of the engineering design process to build, test and refine your own model of a Mars lander in your learning space. Learn how engineers are just one of the many careers that contribute to complex solar system missions.

Maximum Number of Participants: 180

Instructor: Estelle

Ecosystem Investigators

Work together to create a virtual ecosystem model revealing how living and non-living parts connect and interact in an aquatic (水生的) environment. Using your new knowledge about ecosystem interactions, you can be a wetland scientist and explore the relationship between organisms in a real pond sample. Can you help us determine if the wetland ecosystem is in balance?

Maximum Number of Participants: 350

Instructor: Josephine

Piece of Mind

Be awe-inspired by the power of the brain as students learn how it controls memory, movement, and sight. Discover how the brain functions through live activities and fun puzzles, and see a real human brain specimen!

Maximum Number of Participants: 250

Instructor: Lorraine

Wetland Wonders

Join us on a virtual hike to learn how a wetland habitat provides food, water and shelter to the animals that call it home. Practice your nature observation skills by exploring live aquatic organisms from a wetland pond and discover how these animals survive in their watery environment.

Maximum Number of Participants: 50

Instructor: Claudia

Costs & Booking（charged according to the groups）

Cancellation Policy

You will be invoiced for 50% of the program cost if you need to cancel within four weeks and 100% of the program cost within two weeks of the program date. If you need to reschedule your program, a rescheduling fee in the amount of 15% of your program fee will be added to your reservation.