1 . A “secretive” new species of frog has been discovered on the forest floor in India’s Western Ghat mountain range. Named the starry dwarf frog after the markings on its dark brown back, it is just 2 centimeters long.

The frog, whose closest relatives are a group of species native to India and Sri Linka, is the only member of an ancient lineage (血统)dating back to millions of years ago, according to researchers from India and the US. It is unclear whether the species is descended from African or Asian frogs.

A group of Indian and US researchers first came across the local species hidden in leaf-litter as part of a wider project to look for new frogs, lizards and snakes in the richly biodiverse region and stored it in a jar for later study. Genetic testing and a closer look at its shape, colouring and other features has shown that it doesn’t match any existing species.Kartik Shanker of the Indian Institute of Science, who helped design the study, says while it is common to find new frogs in India, this one needs to be noticed. “This particular species not just is a new species, but also belongs to a new genus (属), and that makes it a little more special,” says Shanker.

The number of known species of frog identified in India has climbed from around 200 to above 400 over the past two decades. While many species new to science are frequently immediately sorted as endangered, it is too early to say whether the starry dwarf frog is threatened. “They are very secretive,” says Shanker, adding that the team didn’t know the size of its population. The frog is active at night and lives near water.

Habitat loss is a serious risk to frogs in tropical forests around the world, alongside threats such as a deadly fungus(真菌)that has been killing off amphibians(两栖动物)for the past four decades. But the new species was found in a reserved forest, meaning it will enjoy a degree of protection by Indian government agencies.

5 . Microbiologists have designed a sustainable way to remove polluting microplastics from the environment by using bacteria. Initial design as it is, it paves the way for sustainably lowering plastic pollution levels and stop the “plastification”.

Bacteria naturally tend to group together and stick to surfaces, and this creates a sticky material called “biofilm”. Researchers at the Hong Kong Polytechnic University (PolyU) want to use this adhesive bacteria character and capture microplastics in polluted water to form an easily disposable and recyclable blob(团) .

Sylvia Lang Liu, microbiology researcher at PolyU and lead researcher on this project, together with his team, has engineered a bacterial biofilm, which can fix and absorb microplastics floating around in the water, and make them sink to the bottom of the water. Then the researchers can separate the microplastics from the bacteria traps and get them ready to recycle.

Microplastics are the plastic fragments, usually smaller than 5mm, which are accidentally released into the environment during production and breakdown of grocery bags or water bottles, or during everyday activities such as washing synthetic (合成的) clothes or using personal care products with scrubbing microbeads in them. Microplastics are visually tiny, making it challenging to develop effective solutions to trap, collect, and recycle them.

Microplastics are not easily biodegradable (生物降解的), so they stick around for long and absorb and accumulate poisonous chemicals. They spread into wastewater and into the oceans, endangering marine animals and eventually threatening human health, Microplastics had been found in more than 114 species living in the water and also salt, lettuce, apples, and more in 2018 according to the International Maritime Organization.

“This is an innovative application of biofilm engineering l0 address the plastio pollution crisis,” said Dr Joanna Sadler, researcher at University of Edinburgh, who was not involved in this study. “One of the biggest challenges in dealing with microplastics is capturing such small particles. Liu and co-workers have denmonstrated an elegant solution to this problem, which holds great potential to be further developed into a real-world wastewater treatment technology.”

A cliff (悬崖) wall in the mountains of the Shennongjia Nature Reserve, China’s Hubei Province, is home to over 700 wooden boxes,     1     make up one of the country’s last sanctuaries (保护区) for native wild bees.

    2     (popular) known as the wall of hives (蜂箱), this unique bee sanctuary consists of over 700 wooden boxes     3     (place) on the side of a cliff wall, about 4,000 feet above sea level. The boxes are meant to attract the area’s wild bees into     4     (settle) in, and most of them are indeed inhabited by families of thousands of bees at any given time. Because the hives are tightly packed together, in order to reach the higher ones, beekeepers have to use the lower     5     (box) as steps, while trying to keep their balance. The ones near the top can only be     6     (access) by rope from the top of the cliff. It’s     7     difficult but necessary task, as the location of the beehives in an inaccessible place is meant to protect their inhabitants and their honey     8     bears.

What makes the Shennongjia Nature Reserve so special for beekeeping     9     (be) the presence of several different climates zones in a single area. Because of its unique     10     (appear) and location, the wall of hives has also become popular with tourists.

9 . The dog Pooch Chi Chi managed to open the door and let a fire crew in after his owner collapsed on the kitchen floor.

Responders were searching for another entrance when they heard a “click” as the dog managed to unlock the door to let them in, They found the man, named only as Mr Green, collapsed on the floor in the kitchen as the fire took hold on the hob. Firefighters then swiftly put out the fire and carried out first aid until paramedics(急救医士)arrived.

Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service said “a potential disaster” was averted with help from the dog. They said they were called to the scene after a smoke detector was activated and a Careline alarm was sounded.

Mr Green initially answered the call but operator at Careline lost communication. Within six minutes, the crew was on scene and investigating. They could hear the alarm but were unable to establish contact with the man inside. With curtains drawn, the crew could not see in-side but could hear a dog barking. They tried the front door, but it wouldn’t open. As the crew looked for another entrance, they heard a “click” and the front door opened. The crew went inside to find a man collapsed on the floor in the kitchen when a fire was beginning to take hold on the cooker. They contacted the ambulance service, put out the fire and allowed fresh air in. Firefighters then carried out first aid and stabilized the man until paramedics arrived. It wasn’t until later in the incident that they discovered that Chi Chi had managed to open the front door and let the crew inside.

Ian Bolton, Crew Manager for Home and Partnerships at Devon and Somerset Fire and Rescue Service added: “Having monitored detection in people’s homes means the fire service are only minutes away from providing lifesaving assistance. This is a real success story and highlights the importance of Careline and the fire service. Careline’s system, combined with the speed of our crews getting to the incident, saved Mr Green’s life. The cherry on the cake. however, was Chi Chi letting the crews in before they had to force entry to the property. ”

Rising sea levels are threatening coastlines in China, for example in     1     (city) such as Shanghai, Tianjin and Guangzhou. If sea levels rise by one meter, more than 92,000 square kilometers of China’s coast could be flooded. This could potentially force 67 million people     2     (move) away. Almost two-thirds of the ice in Asia’s glaciers (冰川) could disappear if average global temperature rises beyond 1.5℃ by the end of the century. If that happens, the impacts     3     China will be felt in multiple areas, from water availability, to agriculture, and to biodiversity.

The good news is     4     China is becoming a global leader on climate action. For example, over the last five years, China     5     (use) more solar and wind energy than any other country in the world. China is also the largest clean energy investor in the world —     6     (spend) some $130 billion in new energy in recent years.

The development of electric vehicles is particularly     7     (inspire) in China. More than 50 percent of electric vehicles in the world     8     (sell) in China every year. And China is now a world leader in the     9     (promote) of clean energy technologies.

Ecological civilization has become the cornerstone (基石) of China’s long-term development strategy, much like climate action is     10     important part of the 17 Sustainable Development Goals.