1 . In habitats across the planet, animals periodically drop everything to walk, fly or swim to a new place. Wildlife such as whales and geese learn migration paths by following their parents. Others, including small songbirds, gain the distance and direction of their migration within their genetic code. And some animals use a combination of genetics and culture to guide their migration.

Another group of migrators does not quite fit either model, and researchers have only recently started to figure out how they find their way. Take the Cory’s shearwater, an oceangoing sea bird that migrates over the Atlantic every year. The young do not migrate with their parents, so culture cannot explain their journeys. And the exact paths vary wildly from individual to individual, making genetics equally unlikely.

Cory’s shearwaters are long-lived, rarely producing young successfully before age nine. This leaves an opening for learning and practice to develop their migration patterns. Researchers call this the “exploration-refinement”, and until now it has been hypothetical (假设的) because of difficulties in tracking migratory animals’ movements.

But a team of researchers has done that by attaching small geolocators to more than 150 of the birds aged four to nine. They found that younger birds traveled longer distances, for longer periods, and had more diverse paths than older birds. “We finally have evidence of the ‘exploration-refinement’ for migratory birds,” says Letizia Campioni, who led the study. Younger Cory’s shearwaters are able to fly just as fast as the adults—but they do not, suggesting that the young do more exploring, which gradually fades as they mature and settle into a preferred course.

Although it may seem less efficient than other strategies, “exploration refinement could be beneficial to birds and other organisms in a rapidly changing world due to unpredictable man-made changes,” says Barbara Frei. “It might be safer to repeat a behavior that was recently successful than to rely on patterns that were perfected long ago but might no longer be safe.”

2 . Dressed in a kachhad, a traditional Nepalese clothes, Umesh Balal walked into his meetings at the 28th United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP28) on climate change in Dubai with a sense of determination,

Balal, who has physical disability, was there to publicly ________ inclusion of disability rights in the climate change conference an aspect that he said has long been ________ by organizers of the world’s largest annual meeting on climate issues.

As a student, Balal was ________ about science and involved himself in research on environmental science. Those were his first few interactions that ________ the climate related issues to him. Being from a mountainous region, Balal ________ more about how climate change had ________ people there, which led him to develop climate anxiety.

The more Balan ________ himself to climate science, the more he learned about the impact of climate change. People with more resources have better chances of ________ the climate crisis. But the less developed countries, for the ________ communities, usually don’t have the same opportunities, which will push them further into the ________.

And it is even harder for people with ________. Many people with disabilities in Nepal don’t have ________ to proper education or opportunities for growth. As a result, they aren’t able to advocate for their rights.

In an interview, Balan said, “________, I am honored that I come from a supportive family, where I had a chance of good education which ________ me to grow in life. This is what I ________ for others, to change the way they live their lives.”

3 . We all love butterflies. Their beautiful wings attract us, and their presence lights up our garden. Well, that’s our view of butterflies, but have you ever wondered what plants think of them?

The butterflies’ eggs lie on the underside of the leaves. The eggs themselves don’t damage plants. However, upon coming into contact with the eggs, the plants become oversensitive. It means that once a plant recognizes a pest, it will cause death in the contacted plant part. When these dead leaves or partial leaf parts break away from the plant, the eggs on them fall off. Along with the hypersensitivity response, plants also produce something special, which can attract animals to eat the eggs, thus preventing damage in the future.

After the baby butterflies come out of their eggs, the caterpillar (毛虫) stage begins. Most caterpillars feed on the leaves of the plants, damaging some of the plants in your own garden. Incredibly, they are major plant pests that bring about major losses to farmers. The next stage is pupa (蛹). The caterpillars begin their change into an adult. They don’t depend on the energy that the leaves provide. Finally, they become adult butterflies that have wings and move from one plant to the other. They feed on the sweet liquid produced by flowers.

While on their search for food, the butterflies carry pollen (花粉) on their body. They are key pollinators that place pollen from one flower to another in ecosystem. Plants that have flowers will create some special features to draw these pollinators’ attention. Certain plants have flowers giving off smells that can charm butterflies when they are looking for a mate. Some plants even have flat flowers to assist butterflies when landing.

Butterflies aid in pollination during their final adult stage. Thus, they change into beneficial insects to plants. This change makes butterflies an important friend of plants, despite being a hated enemy in previous life cycle stages!

4 . Taking a holiday doesn’t mean letting go of all the eco-friendly choices. There are many ways you can have a much-deserved break without harming the environment.

Forget planes. While most forms of transport produce carbon dioxide, planes have a massive carbon footprint because of the huge number of miles they travel.     1     Many of us ignore the endless beautiful scenery around us. There’s the outstanding beauty of the Mississippi River.

Alternatively, you can drive your car to the Grand Canyon to see its splendor.

Pack with care.     2     All of their bottles, from shampoo and conditioner to body wash and moisturizer (润肤霜), are now made from recycled plastic that can be repurposed again and again so no new plastic is produced. And their iconic soap bars now also come in plastic-free packaging.

    3     Hotels can be huge producers of greenhouse gases. Think about the water that’s wasted and all the buffet food that goes uneaten. So choose an eco-friendly option instead. Camping and a home stay — where you live with a family in their own home — are two of the best options. But if you insist on staying in the hotel, pick one made from sustainable materials.     4    

Buy gifts responsibly. Bringing back gifts for friends and loved ones is part of the fun of a holiday.     5     Avoid anything plastic, or if it is plastic, make sure it is 100% recyclable, and make sure your friends will love whatever you give them so it isn’t just thrown in the bin headed for landfill.

6 . Why do we find ugly animals so attractive? And what makes odd-looking creatures so cute?

Evolution plays a role. According to Austrian zoologist Konrad Lorenz, human attraction to infantile (婴儿的) features, such as big eyes, large heads and soft bodies, is an evolutionary adaptation that helps ensure that adults care for their children, guaranteeing the survival of their species. Strange-looking animals such as blobfish, pugs, aye-ayes and bulldogs all share these infantile qualities that cause an affectionate response among humans and an innate instinct to nurture and protect. And these infantile characteristics increase a person’s “protective behavior, attention and willingness to care” for the individual and reduce the “likelihood of aggression towards an infant”, says Marta Borgi, a researcher.

Ugly animals often have other value—some, like the blobfish or the naked mole rat, live in extreme environments that they have adapted to in remarkable ways. Scientists are keen to study these animals to understand whether their biology might provide fresh insights that could lead to treatments for human health conditions such as cancer, heart disease and neurodegenerative diseases.

But while many ugly creatures are exquisitely adapted to their life in the wild and can provide enormous benefits to the ecosystems they live in, they often still don’t get as much attention as more traditionally cute and cuddly animals. This can result in a bias (偏见) which leads to many of the less attractive species being overlooked in terms of research.

There are culture-led other factors that also drive our obsession (痴迷) with ugly-cute animals. “The ugly-cute thing is very fashionable,” says Rowena Packer, a lecturer of animal behavior. This is partly driven by social media, with many celebrities (名人) and influencers showing off pet pugs and French bulldogs on Instagram, she says.

But there are some serious welfare concerns around this trend. Vets are urging people not to choose a flat-faced dog breed, because they suffer from serious health problems. Pugs and French bulldogs which have been selectively bred experience breathing difficulties, repeated skin infections and eye diseases. So while goofy features such as bulging eyes and wrinkly faces may make us smile, we might want to reconsider our obsession with “ugly-cute” pets.