2 . Each year, the discovery of new shark species underlines how little we know about ocean biodiversity. In a recent report conducted by Sibert and Rubin, they reported an unexpected finding: a large-scale extinction of sharks in the pelagic ocean, the largest ecosystem on Earth, about 19 million years ago. Their discovery suggests that some extinctions in the open sea of the past may have been mysterious.

The study of Sibert and Rubin takes advantage of a system by using tiny, hard bits of shark skin and bony fish teeth that naturally fall from their bodies to the seafloor. These extremely small fossils provide a rich record of ancient oceanic sharks and their abundance for thousands of years. By studying fossils from many regions, the diversity patterns can give major insights into evolution (进化) of the open sea that would be otherwise unknown.

Sibert and Rubin quantified(量化)a past extinction of sharks, reporting a 90% decline in number and >70% drop in diversity. They found that nearer-shore sharks appear to survive, but migratory ones go extinct. The finding of this study is that sharks had undergone a widespread extinction that reorganized their communities from 16 million to 20 million years ago.

Sibert and Rubin narrowed the disappearance of sharks to a window of time under 100,000 years around 19 million years ago, but the causes of this event remain unclear. Because this time period does not stand out as a period of major climatic change, the authors do not attribute(归因于) environmental factors as an extinction driver. As for other causes, the loss of shark diversity is directly linked to overfishing.

The loss of sharks from the oceans has profound, complex, and unavoidable ecological consequences because their presence reflects the stability of marine ecosystems. Yet, one-quarter of the global diversity of sharks is currently threatened with extinction. Despite recent improvements in conservation actions, shark communities never recovered from a mysterious extinction event 19 million years ago; the ecological fate of what remains is now in our hands.

3 . I finally climbed into bed at 1: 20 in the morning. My friends had helped me celebrate my 31st birthday in the basement apartment, where I lived.

Earlier in the day I had prepared for the unlikely event of a flood. We are about a third of a mile from the banks of the Ahr River. It had been raining buckets that week and the government had sent out a flood warning, though not for where I was. Still, I’d placed sandbags on the floor outside my garden door and put electronics on tables. “Silly bro!” My friends laughed at me for doing that, but I thought, why take a chance?

As I drifted off to sleep, I was awakened by the sound of rushing water, as if I were lying beside a waterfall. When I got off the bed, I was shocked that cold water was rising fast. In darkness, I grabbed my cellphone and turned on the flashlight. When I stepped out of the bedroom, I saw water shooting through the gaps of the door.

I began to panic. I knew I had to get out—fast! In bare feet, I started to make my way to the only escape: the door that led upstairs to the main floor. Finally I made it to the door and tried several times to-pull it open even just a little bit, but the rushing water shut it again. I looked around for anything I could use to keep it open. There in the corner was a coat rack (架子). I took it and, once again, opened the door, throwing the coat rack between the door and the frame (门框) to keep the door from shutting. Finally, I managed to make a gap just wide enough to squeeze (挤) through and make it into the hallway.

I leaped on to the stairs and ran outside. I stood there in the darkness, wet through. What was once a lovely street was now a waterscape, with floating ruins instead of people and cars. The river had drowned (淹没) the neighborhood!

4 . How has global warming changed your life? Perhaps you experience hotter summers. But for reindeer herders (驯鹿游牧民), the influence goes far beyond that.

Living in the Arctic region spreading from Russia to Sweden, local reindeer herders make a living by herding. For generations, they have been living in harmony with the cold winters with their deep understanding of snow and ice types, weather patterns and animal behaviors. This allows them to predict and prepare for winters.

However, the warming Arctic is messing up these traditional signals, making herders’ traditional ways of predicting weather less useful. In 2014, during the winter migration (迁徙) southward with their reindeer in North Russia, something unexpected happened. Heavy rainfall formed an ice shield above the lichen (地衣), normally covered by soft snow. Unable to access the lichen beneath the ice, the reindeer suffered from hunger, resulting in the deaths of tens of thousands of them.

The warming climate goes beyond threatening reindeer herders’ livelihood; it also threatens their culture. “We are an Arctic people, and our culture is written in snow. But climate change means the snow will get less and less,” Henrik Blind, a member of Sami herding family in Sweden, told The Guardian. In his language, there are over 300 words to describe snow. But with less snow, the Sami culture faces the risk of losing elements of its cultural identity.

Despite these challenges, herders have been cooperating with scientists to better deal with climate change. For example, for scientists, the difference between various types of snow is hard to tell. But local people who live with snow every day can see what scientists fail to see. At the same time, satellite data from modern scientists could help predict disasters for the local people. To combine these two different knowledge systems together, the US National Science Foundation set up the Center for Braiding Indigenous Knowledge and Science this September. The goal is to recognize the value of indigenous (土著) knowledge alongside modern research methods.

“We must realize we can’t over-consume our planet. This is urgent. We need to listen to all the indigenous people who know how to live in harmony with the planet,” Blind told The Guardian.

5 . Many green plants that are used to decorate living rooms and kitchens are marketed as air-purifying. However, scientists largely agree that plants can’t do very much to clean an entire room. Now, a Parisian company known as Neoplants is trying to change that by growing genetically modified (转基因的) plants that help remove harmful chemicals from the air.

Its first product, called the Neo P1, is a bioengineered version of the pothos (绿萝). Pothos is characterized by its green leaves and is relatively easy to care for. The Neo P1 is meant to capture and recycle dangerous air pollutants commonly found in homes called volatile organic compounds (挥发性有机化合物VOCs), which are often human-made chemicals. So it’s a popular choice for people looking to beautify their living spaces. But the Neo P1 starts at $179, and to purchase one, potential shoppers must first join a waitlist.

The idea of air-purifying plants came from a 1989 study by NASA, in which regular houseplants were tested in two-by-two-foot rooms. When scientists filled these rooms with VOCs, they found the plants could absorb some of the harmful compounds. “Actually, it’d take about ten houseplants per square foot to noticeably improve air quality,” Michael Waring, an environmental engineer at Drexel University who wasn’t involved with Neoplants, reported in a 2019 study. “Plants, though they do remove VOCs, remove them at such a slow rate that they can’t compete with the air exchange mechanisms already happening in buildings,” Waring said.

As for Neoplants, its Neo Pl was tested in a 35-liter glass room. In it, the Neo P1’s results were 30 times better than NASA’s, according to the company — which means it’d still take a large number of them to clean a room. Currently, the company’s engineers are designing testing sites that more accurately resemble living spaces. To Neoplants’ executives, cleaning the air inside a home is a more logical starting point than trying to filter (过滤) the entire atmosphere.

7 . For as long as I can remember, I’ve had animals in my life. These days, there are four small companions: three dogs and an eight-year-old brown Burmese cat called Soo. I love them all dearly and they are the best company possible. They greet me warmly each time I come home, never complain and never get angry or argue with me. I have, though, discovered recently, after all these years of never being without a pet, there are unexpected risks of living with animals.

This year, I’ve spent four weeks in hospital, thanks to the cat. I felt such a fool telling the doctors that the terrible bruising (擦伤) and growing lump (肿块) in the middle of my right foot was due to my cat misbehaving.

It was a Sunday night. I’d had friends for lunch and was in the kitchen clearing up. I’d emptied and washed a heavy glass ashtray (烟灰缸), which I’d placed on the side. Soo knows she’s not allowed on the kitchen surfaces. Yet, she jumped up, marched towards the ashtray, and knocked it off. I like to think she didn’t know my foot was directly in her line of fire, but it was. I cried with pain. I couldn’t see any obvious wound and the ashtray survived the fall. I thought nothing more of it.

I’ve never seen such bruising as appeared the next day, but I carried on. I had work to do. It wasn’t too painful and surely the bruising would go away eventually. I carried on like that for a couple of weeks until a visit from my son, who thought the lump had grown and could be infected, so demanded I take a trip to the hospital.

As for forgiveness, there’s nothing to forgive. It’s my fault the ashtray was too close to the edge. There’ll still be treats and toys prepared for my pets under the Christmas tree.

China will closely track     1     assess the impacts of Japan's "extremely selfish and     2    (responsible) " plan to discharge nuclear-contaminated water into the ocean, the National Nuclear Security Administration said.

Japan's plan prioritizes its own interests     3     the long-term well-being of humanity, the administration said in     4     media release on Thursday, the same day that Japan is set to start releasing     5     (treat) radioactive water into the Pacific Ocean     6     part of its plan to decommission the crippled Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant.

Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida     7     (give) the final go-ahead for the plan to gradually release more     8    1 million metric tons of radioactive water from the plant into the ocean at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday.

"We urge the Japanese government to listen to the voice of the international community and     9     (effective) dispose of the nuclear-contaminated water in a     10     (science), safe and transparent manner under strict international supervision," the administration said.

10 . The planet is in trouble, and a gas-car ban just might help. But how will it affect you? Cars are not small investments. They make a big impact on our wallets — but also on the environment. That’s why when California announced a gas-car ban in August arid other states suggested they’d follow suit, there was a mixed response. Sure, reducing our use of gas by choosing more eco-friendly cars could slow climate change and help everyone live more sustainably, not to mention save money on gas in the long run. But what would happen to people’s cars? Would they have to buy an expensive new electric vehicle right now?

Well, let’s set a few things straight first: This isn’t a full-on ban. People living in or visiting California will still be able to drive gas cars, as well as buy and register used internal combustion engines (ICE) vehicles, well after the law takes effect. But in a little over a decade, residents will not be allowed to register new gas-burning cars. It will take more than a decade for the ban to take effect fully — 2035, to be exact.

Why is California banning gas cars? It’s all about the environment. More than half of California’s carbon pollution comes from the transportation sector, and eliminating ICE vehicles is a critical first step in, addressing the climate crisis. California has seen the impact of climate change firsthand in the form of natural disasters such as floods, mudslides, record-breaking droughts and extreme wildfires — all of which have increased in frequency and intensity in recent years.

However, new rules and laws can be fearsome, and hard to carry out at first. For example, electric vehicles (EVs) also don’t get as many miles per charge, making them difficult for long-distance trips and states with few charging stations. Related to that, the country needs more public charging stations. But, of course, the biggest barrier to more people getting excited about electric vehicles is price, which is currently higher than traditional vehicles due to their expensive batteries.

Still, Rauch is hopeful. “As someone who is focused on the health benefits of reducing pollution, I see the benefits as vastly outweighing the challenges,” she says. “At the end of the day, who doesn’t want their children and grandchildren to breathe clean air?”