1 . Mary Poppins held on to her famous black umbrella while floating overhead and singing “Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious.” The audience watched in amazement, and many sang along! Poppins floated for a bit and eventually landed in the midst of the excited crowd before getting on stage. No, this wasn’t a scene from a Disney movie.     1    His background helps explain his passion for music. The world-renowned violinist and conductor was born into a musical family in October 1949 in Maastricht, Netherlands. He began learning to play the violin at age five and immediately fell in love with the instrument!

    2     He started by creating a small ensemble (乐团). Then in 1978, Rieu established the Maastricht Salon Orchestra, from which he later developed the Johann Strauss Orchestra.

They had limited success until 1995 when Rieu was asked to provide entertainment for a soccer game. He got the entire stadium to sing along to a popular waltz.     3    

Today Rieu is the best-selling classical artist worldwide. He has sold in the ballpark of an astonishing 40 million records. He is the biggest male solo touring artist on the planet. His concerts sell more tickets than Beyoncé and Bruce Springsteen!

Many classical concerts are serious events, but Rieu’s are the opposite. He’s been nicknamed “The King of the Waltz” because he loves waltzes.     4     Rieu says, “I love Johann Strauss, but I am also fascinated by Andrew Lloyd Webber and Bruce Springsteen.”

His shows are attended by people of all ages and always include surprises, like the delightful appearance by Mary Poppins. As Rieu says, “I only play music that touched my heart. And I know when it touches my heart, it will touch your heart.” During his performances, many audience members are visibly moved. They often clap, sing, dance, laugh, weep or hug one another. Rieu promises his audience, “You will have an evening that you will never forget.”And he is true to his word.

2 . Large Study Details Years of Brain Changes in Alzheimer’s Patients

A long-term study in China has shown that a series of changes take place in the brains of people who get Alzheimer’s disease long before they present signs of the sickness.

    1     The individuals were examined on a regular basis during that period. The researchers used brain imaging, spinal fluid (脊髓液) checks and other tools to collect data.

The researchers reported that the study subjects who later developed Alzheimer’s showed high levels of disease-linked protein in their spinal fluid.     2     Then every few years, the study detected another so-called biomarker of coming trouble.

Scientists still do not know exactly how Alzheimer’s forms. The disease slowly destroys the brain, affecting the ability to think. Alzheimer’s patients develop proteins called beta-amyloid and tau, which over time build up into plaques (斑块) that block brain processes. The new research, published in the New England Journal of Medicine, offers a timeline for how these proteins develop.

Scientists already knew that in rare, genetic forms of Alzheimer’s that affect young people, a poisonous form of amyloid starts developing about 20 years ahead of symptoms. At some point after that, tau develops as well.     3    

“The more we know about Alzheimer’s treatment targets and when to address them, the better and faster we will be able to develop new therapies and preventions,” said Claire Sexton, director of scientific programs with the Alzheimer’s Association. She noted that blood tests are coming soon that promise to also help by making it easier to find amyloid and tau.

More than 6 million Americans, and millions more worldwide, have Alzheimer’s. There is no cure. But last year, Leqembi became the first approved drug that could slow the worsening of early Alzheimer’s for a few months.     4     Other drugs are being developed to target tau.

3 . Addiction to Labeling

Maybe you’ve noticed it in the comments section of popular social media posts about anxiety. depression or things alike, with a number of people claiming to pick these labels for themselves.

These days, labeling is everywhere.     1     However, the negative part is that it’s easy for someone to identify with the characteristics without truly recognizing the context in which these characteristics would require diagnosis, according to Charlotte Armitage, a registered integrative psychotherapist and psychologist.

If you have done your research and genuinely feel that you have some form of mental health concern, then finally having a name for your behaviors can be great. But the risk is that many people will seek labels and intervention for any behavior, pattern or emotion that is outside of the permanent happy group that society has set as the norm. “    2     Then the saying ‘a little bit of knowledge is dangerous’ springs to my mind,” Armitage adds.

    3     “Children are still developing and evolving, and many childhood behavioral features may seem like those of a disorder when there’re other potential explanations for that behavior,” Armitage notes. Ideally, a diagnosis for a child should be carried out by a qualified mental health professional. So it is with an adult.

Nevertheless, the most important thing to bear in mind is that diagnosis doesn’t mean to indicate that you are broken or less capable.     4     And if you go deeper, it can alert you to the fact that you are not alone, and that many people experience life in the same way as you do.

4 . Hanwengong Shrine

Now we come to Hanwengong Shrine, which is beside Hangjiang river and west of Bijia mountain.     1     In the square in front of the hall, an ancient book-shaped stone is carved with two famous sayings of Han Yu on it, meaning hard work is the precondition for success, and deep thought is the guarantee of success.

In the year of A.D. 819, for some political reason, Han Yu was exiled (流放) to Chaozhou, a backland at that time. But he was not depressed by this, and he helped local people to develop education, agriculture, irrigation and release slaves.     2    

The shrine was built against the mountain and divided into two parts, the front part and the back part. Now we play a small game: count the stone steps, and later I’ll tell you a secret. How many steps are there? Yes, 51 steps! Why?     3     The first time Han Yu came to Chaozhou, he was impressed by the beautiful scenery and hospitality of local people. You see that old tree? People say the more flowers in the tree, the more well-educated students are. But in Qing Dynasty, this magic tree, planted by Han Yu himself, died, so people planted this tree instead.

    4     Here is one: when Han Yu was living in Chaozhou, there was a very fierce and cruel crocodile in the Hanjiang river, which was a big social harm. One day, Han Yu drafted a statement against the crocodile and made it public by the river. Incredibly, from the next day on, the crocodile was gone. Later, the statue, made of a portrait of Han Yu, was built and his words were left on the monument to mark his achievements.

5 . The young lead new trends in consumption market

With the post-1990 generation becoming a vibrant (充满活力的) force in society and the post-2000 generation gradually entering the workforce, the purchasing power of the new generation of consumers has been steadily growing.

    1     Growing up in the internet era, the young consumers generally have higher education levels and a broader global outlook, and come from a relatively strong economic background. As such, their consumption behavior is different from that of the earlier generations.

In terms of consumption pattern, online shopping has become the top choice for young people. Young people not only comprise a comparatively high percentage of internet users but also tend to shop online.     2     This makes them easily influenced by product promotions and influencers on social media.

And yet a trend toward rational consumption has been growing rapidly over the past few years.     3     Instead, they focus more on product quality and functionality. They tend to compare products and services, and do some research before making purchasing decisions, in order to get the best out of their purchase. According to a study conducted by the Social Survey Center of China Youth Daily, 90.1 percent of the 1,000 young respondents said their consumption decision is based on the “spending where necessary and saving where possible” principle. Besides, young consumers seek more personalized and diversified products, reflecting their emotional needs and increasing sense of self-worth.     4    

When it comes to brand cognition, young consumers seem to favor domestic products. Thanks to information online, young consumers no longer blindly pursue foreign brands and instead prefer local brands, highlighting their confidence in Chinese-made products. From Li-Ning, Anta to Warrior shoes, domestic brands in various fields are being warmly welcomed by young consumers.

6 . Antarctic Tourism: Should We Just Say No?

More people are visiting Antarctic, the frozen continent than ever before.     1     This has brought a new urgency to the question of how much, if any, tourism should be allowed on the icy continent.

The distance most visitors travel to reach Antarctica makes carbon emissions a serious problem.     2     One study calculated that each tourist between 2016 and 2020 was effectively melting around 83 tonnes of snow, due largely to emissions from vacation ships.

    3     The Antarctic Treaty, established in 1961 to provide governance for the continent, operates on a consultative basis, which means all 56 parties have to agree before a change can be put into action. The last major decision on tourism was a measure passed in 2009 that prohibits vacation ships carrying more than 500 passengers from making landings. That regulation has still not officially been carried out as not every signatory country has accepted it domestically.

There is clear agreement that something needs to change, but no agreement on what those changes should be.     4    

7 . Why Are You Still Coughing?

Have you caught a cold recently — but can’t get rid of the cough? You’re not alone. The symptom can stick around for weeks after our bodies have cleared a virus. Michael Shiloh, a physician specializing in infectious disease research at UT Southwestern Medical Center, says coughing patients often report that they were sick as many as eight weeks prior to seeing him. He says, “    1    ”

The United States saw a sharp rise in cases of influenza in late 2023 that’s dragged on into 2024. And though positive tests for the illness have leveled off or decreased countrywide over the past weeks, the number of people seeking healthcare for respiratory (呼吸的) diseases is still elevated across much of the U.S.     2     But research on how infections affect nerves in the airway is revealing new clues.

Coughing is an important reaction that protects the airway from dangers like water or bits of mis-swallowed food, says doctor and researcher Lorcan McGarvey of Queen’s University Belfast.     3     These nerves are decorated with receptor (受体) proteins that react to everything from cold air to hot pepper. When a stimulus causes those receptors, nerves send signals to the brain that we experience as the urge to cough.

While it may seem obvious that coughing is meant to clear our throats, it’s also possible that viruses cause the reaction to help themselves spread.     4     And if we do ultimately cough to clear out our airway during an infection, that still wouldn’t explain what exactly our nerves sense during an infection that causes a cough.

“We don’t know,” says electrophysiologist Thomas Taylor-Clark of the University of South Florida. “But what we can say is that we do know some things, one being that viruses cause infection.”

8 . Astronomers are eagerly anticipating a celestial (天体的) event that promises to be a once-in-a-lifetime sight: the appearance of a “new star” in the night sky, expected to occur sometime between now and September, as reported by NASA. This event, known as a nova (新星), is projected to take place within the T Coronae Borealis system, nestled in the constellation (星座) Corona Borealis, situated between the Boötes and Hercules constellations.

In contrast to the explosive demise of a massive star seen in a supernova, a nova is characterized by a sudden, brief explosion originating from a collapsed star, specifically a white dwarf. The T Coronae Borealis system is affectionately called the “Blaze Star.”     1    These stars orbit closely enough to interact violently, leading to periodic explosive events, with the last eruption observed in 1946.

    2     Over time, the red giant becomes increasingly unstable, shedding its outer layers onto the white dwarf. This exchange of matter eventually triggers a “runaway thermonuclear reaction,” resulting in the nova phenomenon, according to NASA.

While the precise timing of the upcoming nova event remains uncertain, astronomers are closely monitoring the T Coronae Borealis system, which has been dimming since March of the previous year. William J. Cooke, lead of NASA’s Meteoroid Environments Office, notes that while most novae occur unexpectedly, T Coronae Borealis is one of the 10 recurring novae in the galaxy, offering some predictability to its eruptions.

Located approximately 3,000 light-years away from Earth, the T Coronae Borealis system is typically too faint to be seen with the naked eye.     3    

Once the nova reaches its peak brightness, it will appear as if a new star has emerged in the night sky, remaining visible for a few days without any equipment and slightly over a week with binoculars before gradually fading from view over the course of about 80 years.

    4    As an effective observing approach, they provide valuable insights into the dynamics of recurrent novae and the processes occurring within these stellar systems.

The NASA Universe account on X will provide regular updates on the nova event, allowing enthusiasts and researchers alike to stay informed about this captivating astronomical phenomenon. Reflecting on past experiences, including witnessing the 1975 Nova Cygni, which inspired his career in astronomy, Cooke underscores the significance of these celestial events in shaping our understanding of the cosmos.

9 . Martha Stewart was charged, tried and convicted of a crime in 2014. As she neared the end of her prison sentence, a well-known columnist wrote that she was “paying her dues,” and that “there is simply no reason for anyone to attempt to deny her right to start anew. ”

    1     Unfortunately, many federal and state laws impose post-conviction restrictions on a shockingly large number of Americans, who are prevented from ever fully paying their debt to society.

At least 65 million people in the United States have a criminal record. This can result in severe penalties (惩罚) that continue long after punishment is completed.

Many of these penalties are imposed regardless of the seriousness of the offense or the person’s individual circumstances.       2     They can affect a person’s ability to get a job and qualification for benefits.

In all, more than 45,000 laws and rules serve to exclude vast numbers of people from fully participating in American life. Some laws make senses. No one advocates letting someone convicted of pedophilia (恋童癖) work in a school.       3     Should a woman who possessed a small amount of drugs years ago be permanently unable to be licensed as a nurse?

These laws are also counterproductive (适得其反), since they make it harder for people with criminal records to find housing or a job, two key factors that reduce backsliding. A recent report makes several recommendations, including the abolition of most post-conviction penalties, except for those specifically needed to protect public safety.       4    

The point isn’t to excuse or forget the crime. Rather, it is to recognize that in America’s vast criminal justice system, and second chances are crucial. It is in no one's interest to keep a large segment of the population on the margins of society.

10 . Childhood Media Shaping Futures

Much of the media we consume during our formative years shapes us into the people we are today. Reflect on a particular piece of media from our childhood—perhaps it’s the TV show we eagerly awaited every weekend during visits to our grandmother’s house.     1     It shapes our dreams and fears and even drives us to future careers.

    2     Older children may have had a lot more restrictions, like TV shows, movies, and social media access. And because of these, they were able to be a child for longer compared to their siblings (兄弟姐妹). Children who have older siblings tend to show more mature tendencies and can appear to “grow up quicker” than other children their age.

While they might have been restricted from social media accounts until a certain age, once given access, they tend to be more prepared. The media exposure of our generation has undoubtedly led to an increased maturation at younger ages.     3    

Simply looking back at previous generations and the rate of consumption and processing of information that we experience every day, the effects of such are only beginning. As soon-to-be or current adults, we are already facing issues such as depression, anxiety, and delays in certain learning and social skills, just to name a few. Are we “more mature?” or are we overexposed and at risk for exceptional mental, physical, and emotional consequences?

In conclusion, childhood media consumption significantly influences our lives.     4     Striking a balance between media exposure and mental well-being is essential for our growth in today’s media-rich world.