1 . Natural disasters can cause people’s fears at any age.     1    , but you do have lots of influence on how your children may face the possible disasters. Let’s see how to talk to your children about natural disasters correctly.

● Be honest

When there is information about natural disasters, try not to hide it.     2    . They may want to know more about where the natural disaster is and the path that it is on. Give proper explanations or even check books out from the library.

●    3    

Ask your children what they are nervous about so that you can solve their concerns. Deal with any of their fears, big or small, and provide some kind of comfort. Whether these disasters are happening far away or close to home, they need to know that you will keep them safe.

● Make a plan for your family

There is no place on Earth that is free from possibly suffering some type of natural disaster. All families should have a disaster plan and emergency supplies at home. Create a family safety plan, and share it with your children.     4    .

● Talk about the helpers

    5    . The idea that firefighters, paramedics (护理人员), and other disaster service workers will be there to help in case of an emergency helps children take away some of the anxiety.

Tai chi is a Chinese martial art often practised with the purpose of     1     (improve) health. The practice forms of tai chi are well known for relaxing, circular movements that work in harmony with breath regulation (调节). It can not only keep your mind calm     2     also make your body strong. As you focus on your breathing and movements, your mind can clear itself of its worries,     3     does your whole body good,

    4     (influence) by Taoist and Confucian thoughts, and the ideas of traditional Chinese medicine, the practice has developed into several styles,     5     (usual) named after a master, such as Chen-style and Yang-style.

Chen Bin, one of the     6     (master) of the Chen-style tai chi, has been practising the martial art since he     7     (be) six years old. More than two decades of practice has made him a master. “One’s understanding of tai chi can develop when the practice continues. As one’s experience grows, it becomes much     8     (easy) to understand its cultural meaning,” Chen Bing explains.

Tai chi has taught Chen Bing     9     (stay) calm during life’s ups and downs, and to learn about the world with     10     open mind. Moreover, the martial art encourages using gentleness to get over toughness, and making use of weakness to win strength through one’s self-awareness, which shows the wisdom of Taoism.

3 . Yesterday, I was shopping in a store, minding my own business, when I saw someone _______ a dog with a “service animal” vest. I gave it very little _______ at first. But then, in the soup aisle (过道), I saw the person and his dog again. When I walked by, the so-called “service animal” growled (咆哮) at me, showing his _______.

_______, service animals are trained not to do that kind of thing. Honestly, it _______ me, and I _______ the dog, fearful of being bitten. I thought about going to find a _______ but finally decided not to because I was afraid to be _______ with the person.

But the dog’s behavior got _______. In the milk aisle, the dog was not growling. Instead, he got his body close to the ________ and started pooping (排便) while the owner just watched. Then, his owner walked on, paying no attention to the waste left in the middle of the ________ aisle.

At this point, I couldn’t stand it anymore, and ________ it was time to actively get a worker. Soon a worker came to guide the dog and his owner out of the ________. Seeing that fearful dog and annoying person disappearing, I felt ________. There was nothing wrong with loving dogs, but dog owners should raise dogs in a ________ manner.

4 . Four Must-Read Environmental Books

Our recommended list of environmental books covers a broad range of topics. The four must-read environmental books are sure to attract the greenest bookworms.

Braiding Sweetgrass

Braiding Sweetgrass by Robin Wall Kimmer looks at the relationship between humans and the land. Kimmer ties lessons she learned to Western society’s view of plants and aims to tell the importance of plants and animals. The book also explores the lessons we may learn from plants and animals and how they relate to certain stories. Braiding Sweetgrass won the 2014 Sigurd F. Olson Nature Writing Award.

The End of Nature

The End of Nature was published in 1989. Its author, Bill Mckibben, describes the relationship between nature and humans. It expresses the thought that nature was previously independent of humans but now has been affected by them in every way. The book tells the ideas of nature and the value it has lost.

Silent Spring

Written by Rachel Carson, Silent Spring has been described as a landmark work of environmental writing and is praised for bringing the environment al movement into the public’s focus. The book stresses the effects of pesticides (杀虫剂) on the environment. The book eventually led to a change in the pesticide law of the US.

The Sixth Extinction

The Sixth Extinction by Elizabeth Kolbert describes previous mass extinction events and connects them to many extinctions presently taking place. Kolbert studies the relationships humans have with the environment and finds that we are in the midst of the sixth mass extinction caused by humans. The Sixth Extinction won the 2015 Pulitzer Prize for General Non-Fiction.

7 . The Fire Festival is celebrated in northern Ghana. It’s a holiday we had never heard of before we came to live in a village here as Peace Corps community volunteers. It’s unbelievably great.

On the Fire Festival — Bugim Chug u in the local language — drums beat a quick and regular rhythm that locals dance to in a circle of bodies, men and women, the old and young, holding torches of burning grass above their heads, which stands for the light and getting off negative energies.

At this moment, this festival is being held at the beginning of the lunar year. The locals are all so involved in the celebration that they don’t pay as much attention to us as they normally will. When they find us getting involved as they are, they dance more vigorously and scream with joy.

Danielle, a friend of mine in the Peace Corps, says, “That we join in the celebration is significant because foreigners here are typically seen as the representatives of other organizations, not as people who are willing to join in the Fire Festival rituals (仪式). But in fact, we are dancing and celebrating as one.”

Our two-year Peace Corps service will finish up in mid-November. We can think of no better way to say goodbye than by celebrating the Fire Festival with the villagers we’ve come to know. The festival lets us see a different side of them — and lets them see a different side of us. The neighbors who sell rice are now the women who urge us to run faster and dance harder at the Fire Festival. And rather than view us as low-key (低调的) volunteers, they see us as the ones who have crazy dance steps with wild screams.

8 . With artificial intelligence (AI) seemingly working its way into every technology out there, one area where it’s considered particularly promising is in helping doctors. And already, AI is entering some doctors’ offices.

Dr. Michael Mansour of Massachusetts General Hospital is an early user who’s helped by a form of AI that could someday change the way doctors get information. When a patient comes in with unknown infection (感染), Mansour turns to a computer program called UpToDate. It’s a common tool, with more than 2 million users at 44,000 health care organizations in over 190 countries. Basically, it’s Google for doctors — searching a huge database (数据库) of articles written by experts in the field, who are all getting information from the latest research.

Wolters Kluwer Health, the company that makes UpToDate, is trying to incorporate (整合) AI so that doctors can have more of a conversation with the database.

Some doctors hope to use AI to comb through a patient’s medical history before an appointment (预约). In some cases, Dr. June-Ho Kim, who directs a program on primary care at Ariadne Labs, says AI technology may also help primary care doctors look after patients without the help of specialists. “It will free up specialists’ time to focus on more difficult cases that they need to really home in on, rather than the ones that could be answered through a few questions,” he says.

Dr. Marc Succi, who was a co-worker of Kim, says, “AI will finally prove to be a trusted medical tool. AI won’t replace doctors, but doctors who use AI will replace doctors who do not. It will become very common just like designing a PPT on a computer. It’s that level of leap.”

9 . Dede Gardner was born in Chicago in 1967 and studied English at Columbia University. Seventeen years after her graduation, she worked as President of Plan B Entertainment, a production company started by Brad Grey.

At Plan B, Dede finds stories to make into films. Jeremy Kleiner, who is now co-president of Plan B, says Dede was his mentor (导师) before he joined her as a producing partner. “I’ve had the honor to work with her for almost 20 years,” he says. “She’s just a one-of-a-kind person in so many ways. She is very brave and views storytelling as the focus of her films.”

This year, Dede is the only woman to have won two Best Picture Oscars, for Moonlight and 12 Years a Slave. Before, together with Kleiner, she won seven films to Best Picture nominations (提名) including Selma in 2015, The Big Short in 2016 and Minari in 2021.

“Basically, whatever Dede does, it turns to gold,” says Jessie Buckley, one of the stars of Women Talking. “Dede has also changed the culture of making movies. She is always there to make the set feel comfortable when we are obviously coming across difficult things. She’s a great example to follow. She’s very careful with protecting the workers’ voice.”

Dede is actually exploring a much healthier and kinder way to make movies. She’s a producer who consciously thinks about creating a set where there is care. That includes making sure there are therapists (治疗专家) on set for all the workers in case there are emergencies happening.

I’m not sure when I started to love qipaos. I just remember that when I saw Zhao Wei and other stars     1     (wear) qipaos in the TV series Romance in the Rain, I     2     (impress). Although Chinese women are fond of wearing qipaos for special events, for example, red ones for weddings, I wear them more     3     (frequent), not only for parties but also sometimes even in the office.

I’ve collected some qipaos,     4     (buy) at a store in one of Beijing’s historical neighborhoods. A Chinese friend of mine recently gave me one of her old qipaos, which almost reaches my ankles. The qipao fits well at the shoulders,     5     it was simply too tight (紧的) at the waist.

Many foreigners’     6     (body) differ from those of the Chinese, which makes     7     hard for some foreigners to take off qipaos. Because I am not too short, and pretty thin, I can often buy ready-made qipaos in China.

In my native United States, non-Asians     8     (be) sometimes blamed on social media for wearing qipaos because of     9     (culture) differences, but in China, people have what I consider a more reasonable and open-minded approach: If foreigners wear qipaos, it is seen     10     an attitude of appreciation for Chinese culture.