1 . I started considering the power of dogs during one of my daily walks around my neighborhood. Almost invariably, I’ll run into at least one person walking his dog. It’s a joyous moment to approach the dog and pet it. I always walk away from these exchanges feeling just a bit more relaxed and happy. And that got me wondering: Could these short interactions with other people’s dogs actually be good for me?

“Absolutely. I think it is safe to say that animals are beneficial to our mental and physical health,” says Nancy Gee, a professor of psychology at Virginia Commonwealth University. Gee says there’s some evidence that the act of actually touching a dog might be an important part of the calming effect. For instance, one study done in Canada found college students reported less stress and reduced feelings of homesickness after brief interactions with dogs, and that the effect was much bigger in those who actually got to pet the animals.

Now, the therapy (治疗) dogs used in research are screened for things like friendliness, good behavior and responsiveness to their handler’s cues (提示). And of course, not everyone is a dog person. “Pets are not a panacea (灵丹妙药),” Gee says. “They’re not necessarily going to be great for every single person. But for people who really connect with the animals, they can make a big difference.”

Research on the health benefits of human interactions with animals, especially with dogs, has exploded in recent years, thanks to the support of the National Institutes of Health and the Waltham PetCare Science Institute. Though the field is still young, Gee says the quality of the evidence is improving all the time, including more randomized controlled trials looking at short interactions. “We’re seeing really nice effects,” she says. “We actually saw those effects one month later. And there’s some evidence that they may exist six months later.”

3 . Balcony (阳台) gardens can be quite valuable for those living in urban areas with little outside space. They might not be big, but when they are carefully designed, balcony gardens can be truly magical space, bringing nature to the heart of a city.     1    .

Consider the balcony’s aspect

The aspect of a balcony—which direction it faces—will determine how much sun it receives. . In the northern hemisphere (北半球), a south-facing balcony gets plenty of sun but can dry out quickly in the heat of summer. An east-facing balcony will get morning light only, while a west-facing one will get sun during the afternoon.     2    .

Make full use of space

    3    . And in small space, it is especially important to make sure with our designs that we are making the most of every inch of space. Vertical (垂直的) gardening techniques can be important to unlock the potential of any balcony garden. Vertical gardens can employ planting pockets, shelving, towers, and hanging containers for climbers.

    4    

Container gardening is likely to be the main method of growing in a balcony garden. But to really make a balcony garden the best it can be, you should use your imagination and think outside the box to make containers. Many different recycled items and materials might be used as you create your balcony garden.

Think about weight

As you decide on methods, containers, and other items for your balcony garden, one important consideration is how much all the elements will weigh.     5    . You should consider what you intend to put. Remember that water will add extra weight as well.

5 . Great white sharks are typically loners, swimming through the world’s vast oceans largely on their own. That’s why scientists were so confused and impressed when they noticed an odd pattern in tracking data from two sharks. Simon and Jekyll.

The two males were first tagged off the coast of Georgia. When they reached Long Island, reseatchers noticed their tracks were remarkably similar. Then they arrived in Novia Scotia within practically the same day - they have traveled more than 4,000 miles together!

“Most animals don’t form any emotional bonds with each other and there are no previous records of two sharks traveling together for such a long period,” Bob Hueter, chief scientist for Ocearch, the group tracking the sharks says, “But we have found that some whites may remain close while hunting to benefit from food pieces after a kill. So we are wondering if this one-time event is similar to that. If so, it will open the door to the secret of sharks’ migration law.”

Now, scientists are trying to puzzle out what’s going on. Researchers suppose that there may be some reasons, such as seawater temperatures and the amount of light each day. And they further put forward other possibilities. Are the two sharks friends or relatives? And do they have more companions that aren’t tagged swimming with them? To uncover the secret, the researchers are running genetic tests For the further research direction.

But no matter what their relationship, the pair’s unique behavior is of great significance in the foreseeable future. At the very least, the discovery that sharks may hang out together could impact conservation efforts. The reseurch lteam, for example, is working to help people view sharks less as blood-thirsty monsters and more as vital players in a healthy ocean ecosystem worthy of protection. They are “humanizing”, which adds to the limited understanding human have of sharks. “They have a mother, a father and siblings,” the team shares, “They’re just trying to make a living in the ocean, and we need them for the balance of life in the sea.”

6 . When Alexia Lecleroq was little, she remembered being yelled at for playing outside in the acid rain. she remembered the city was shutting down because of poor air quality. At an early age, she saw the pollution and health consequences and realized they were having a big effect on her health and growth, and this set of her interest in becoming a social environmental activist. She says, “Climate and environmental justice have become a personal and pressing issue.” It also made clear something that has since been the foundation for all her activism: connection matters,

It’s why she co-founded two nonprofits - Start: Empowerment and the Colorado River Conservancy, engaging student volunteers to make climate education public. It’s why she pushed to bring clean water to East Austin, Texas, where her family lived at that time, and had poisonous tank farms (油罐区) relocated away from residential neighborhoods

Last year, the WWF awarded her the 2022 Conservation Leadership Award that honors the people who push the envelope in environmental conservation. Alexia made herself worthy of the award by demonstrating what a youngster could create with new ideas and her ongoing efforts in the field. That same year, she co-authored a piece in Teen Vugue about why we can’t “influence” our way out of the climate crisis and we need more grassroots organizations.

She shared in an interview, “I grew up with a very collectivist belief and this is what I have been impressing on the community because we aren’t separate.” As a longtime social- environmental justice organizer, she has gained a lot. A key concept underpins all of Alexia’s effort: We’re connected to the land and to each other. “I seek to develop my educational leadership skills. Youth in community should be empowered to make a difference,” she added, explaining her reasons for coming to Harvard.

7 . When Caleb was eight, he adopted his first rabbit Snickers. They were inseparable. But Snickers died less than a year later, and Caleb was ______. He went online looking for another rabbit and was ______ to see hundreds available, abandoned after Easter. He made a presentation to his parents about ______ more rabbits. “It really ______ me that people couldn’t commit to a rabbit’s 10-year life span (寿命),” he said. “So I ______ as many as I could.” There wasn’t room at his family’s house. ______, a farm family nearby let Caleb keep his rabbits in their barn (谷仓).

By the time he was 14, Caleb knew he wanted his rabbits to not only live out their lives in a ______ place but also help others. One day, he discovered a deserted island on the Missisippi and ______ the owner to allow him to raise his rabbits there for a few months. It was the perfect ______ to train these rabbits-quiet, and safe. After securing an investor to help him buy the ______ online, Caleb needed to ______ money for the rabbits’ care plus other costs. So Caleb started the Peacebunny Foundation to ______ donations and hosted educational activities.

Now Caleb’s rabbits are ______ for short stays by families with children who have mental health challenges, He also visits senior centers with his rabbits to stop the elderly feeling ______. “It takes a lot effort,” said Caleb, who still can’t believe he’s guardian to hundreds of rabbits. “But rabbits bring so much ______ into the lives of others-and into mine as well.”

8 . The Yurok people have lived along the Klamath River, which flows from the Cascades in Oregon southwest through Northern California, for thousands of years, protecting the region and river from which they — and others — draw sustenance (生计).

But as development and pollution continue to reduce the number of fish in the river and the quantity and quality of its waters, the Yurok Tribe is legalizing (合法化) the tribe’s longstanding care by granting the Rights of Personhood to the Klamath, the first river in North America to have such rights declared.

The Yurok Tribal Council’s May 2019 resolution means the river has the same legal rights as a human under tribal law. This order allows people to bring law cases on behalf of the river when its rights are violated. According to the resolution, the tribe’s intention is to provide a legal basis for safeguarding the river and its ecosystem, especially in the face of water diversion, industrial pollution, and climate change impacts, among other threats. In a testimony (证词) delivered to the U. S. House of Representatives in October 2019, Yurok Tribe Vice Chairman Frankie Myers said this legal framework could create a path to ward a more thoughtful view of the rights of nature in other communities and courts, and that any money awarded by the Yurok courts will fund cleanup and restoration projects to remedy the litigated harms.

The Yurok Tribe’s resolution draws lessons from the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and echoes the efforts of other Indigenous tribes, including the White Earth Band of Ojibwe, which adopted the Rights of wild rice, in December 2018. “This is a very important step forward in the Rights of Nature movement,” Mari Margil, Associate Director of the Community Environmental Legal Defense Fund commented.

9 . It’s no surprise that wasting things is a nightmare for the environment — everything that we eat, wear, and consume takes up natural resources.When it comes to food waste, the environment has a double whammy — water, packaging,transportation,and agricultural resources get used up, and leftover sandwich or expired (过期的) broccoli you bought in hopes of healthy eating releases greenhouse gases as it decomposes in a landfill.

A new study from the UN Environment Program has found that a fair amount of food may never reach our mouth. Some get lost in production process, but it is mostly households that are to blame: the major waste results from our kitchen. 11 percent of the food in our fridges ends up in the trash, compared to a mere 2 and 5 percent respectively, from grocery stores and fast-food restaurants. These data madden almost half of the world’s population who are still struggling for healthy food. But surprisingly, the new study found that even less-developed countries are guilty of astonishing food waste, which is previously being thought of only as a rich-nation issue.

So what can we do? Something crucial is being more considered and prepared when going to the grocery store. Make a list of meals you want to cook, and then only buy fresh produce that you will 100 percent be eating in the next few days.

Societally, enhancing education on food preservation, food recycling and composting (堆肥), and pushing companies to sell smaller quantities food for one or two persons could all play a helpful role in bringing down the massive pile of food waste, says Edward Jaenicke, a professor of agricultural economics.

While some climate change related issues seem above our individual choices to solve, like the sea level rise,food waste is something we can actually make an impact on, by shopping smart, learning how to compost, and even getting creative with ingredients in the kitchen.We can actually make a difference by making some efforts or good choices or even changes in life.