1 . Love has no borders when it comes to children’s birthday wishes. Zack Winton was ________ in his farm near the border between the US and Mexico when he came across a ________ site. A red balloon was caught in the grass and a note was ________ to it.

On it was written one word — Myra — ________ inside, was a numbered list of things, which was a list of birthday gifts she ________. Zack guessed that the balloon had been ________ from the neighbour city, Nogales, in Mexico. As a soon-to-be grandfather, he ________ hoped he could do something for Myra.

He ________ the information on the Internet hoping to see if anyone would respond to it but drew a ________ there. With Myra’s birthday drawing near and time running out, Zack got in touch with the local radio station in Nogales, which then played the information out ________. Within 24 hours, the radio station ________ Zack back.

With the radio station ________ for the two to meet the next morning, Zack took the day off from work, rushed to a ________, and bought the items on the list — clothes, art supplies, and a doll — and some ________ stuff as well after finding that Myra had a 4-year-old sister.

Zack and his wife packaged all the ________, drove across the border and arrived at the radio station, carrying presents for two ________ girls. The couple watched the young children happily ________ the gifts. Myra’s parents thanked them for their amazing act of ________.

Although there is a 20-foot wall at the border which ________ the two cities, Zack and his wife prove that when it comes to a child having her birthday wishes ________, love has no borders.

2 . Mountain lions are not commonly thought of as animals that swim well. But at least for one adventurous cat, that couldn’t be further from the truth. A new study recorded a young male mountain lion paddling (划水) two - thirds of a mile from the mainland of Washington State to an uninhabited island in Puget Sound. The GPS-collared mountain lion, known as Nolan, took a winding path through the suburbs of Olympia, and along the coast, before taking to the sea.

The researchers also combed through historical records and found evidence of mountain lions inhabiting an additional four islands outside of the range of this youngster’s swim, all of over a mile from shore or the nearest island. This suggests the animals can swim even farther at times, perhaps close to a mile and a quarter. Young male mountain lions often undertake difficult and long journeys in search of new territory, as was the case for Nolan.

“We’re redefining the mountain lion in our minds as an animal that can swim and is willing to swim,” says study co-author Mark Elbroch. “Water shouldn’t be seen as a barrier to movement to any large animal.” In Brazil’s Pantanal, mountain lions regularly swim in the vast wetland during the wet season. In 2010, Elbroch and his colleagues documented a tagged cat repeatedly swimming across a large lake in Chilean Patagonia to eat domestic sheep on an island, swimming 0.6 miles at a time.

Since mountain lion numbers are much lower than they once were and the animals avoid people, behaviors like swimming remain underappreciated, experts say.

National Geographic Explorer Audra Huffmeyer agrees. While she wasn’t surprised that mountain lions can island-hop in the Salish Sea, “the distances covered are incredible... the capacity of large mountain lions to get to extreme habitats is pretty amazing”.

Nolan’s journey and all the data collected will help land managers understand where mountain lions travel, and help identify corridors (走廊) that need to be protected, says Jim Williams, a biologist. And the Olympic Peninsula certainly needs such guidance and protection, as its mountain lions have the lowest genetic diversity of any in the area, records show.

3 . I turned 65 this February, a big milestone. The last 12 months has indeed been a time of profound thinking for me, but not for the reasons you may think.

Recently our culture has started to acknowledge that a perfect woman image is totally unrealistic. I suppose there are a small minority of women born with incredible genes. But for most of us, short of starving ourselves, having plastic surgery, or airbrushing our photos, perfection is an unattainable goal.

I applaud many celebrity women who have come forward recently and said, “Hey, you see that picture of me on the magazine cover. This is what I really looked like before specialized hair and makeup and the magic of Photoshop.” I am so happy that our daughters and granddaughters are being raised with a much more realistic concept of what beauty is.

Being a woman of a certain age, that old message of feminine (女性的) perfection took hold long ago and has been hard to shake. My legs, waist and stomach are bigger than the charts say they should be. I would avoid looking for too long in the mirror. A swimsuit always required a cover-up to be worn over it. I had been very successfully taught to be ashamed of my imperfect body.

However, after a pretty serious health issue last year, I started to have a different feeling about my body. This body has given me two incredible children and endured too many surgeries. My belly, back, feet and knees are marked with countless scars but finally I see what they truly are — my battle scars. My extra pounds are the result of countless dinners I have made and enjoyed with those I love. My scars remind me of all the talented and kind doctors and nurses who have looked after me.

My body has allowed me a wonderful life thus far. I thought my body was not ideal, but now I thank it for being a source of strength, endurance and pleasure. At 65, I finally realize it is truly beautiful.

4 . Isabel Allende, born in 1942 in Peru, is a Chilean-American writer. When she was a young girl, her father Tomas was appointed to work in Chile, causing them to move from Peru to Chile. During the 1960s, she began work in television journalism and eventually became a television hostess. From 1969 to 1973, she was an editor of a children’s magazine.

Allende is the author of over twenty books which have been translated into numerous languages and sold over 65 million copies. In addition to writing novels, she has also penned short fiction, plays and stories for children. A letter to her sick, elderly grandfather became the manuscript of her first novel. She rose to prominence in Latin American literature after the success of this novel. Allende’s own experiences from Chile have filled much of her writing through the years, and her book Paula is a memoir of her childhood and youth in Chile and her departure from that country.

Allende has been a highly influential voice in Latin American literature, often providing an important female perspective on the world. Allende’s writing style combines realistic writing with surprising elements of magic. Her work is sometimes compared to the work of Gabriel Marquez, a famous Colombian novelist known for his work in the magical realist style — “magical realism”. However, her voice is also considered distinct with a style that combines concern for the inner, personal lives of her characters with their physical and social environments.

Two of Allende’s works have been adapted for feature films. She has won many awards, including the Dorothy and Lilian Gish Prize, which is given to whoever has contributed to the beauty of the world and to our understanding of it. Although she has an international reputation for writing, she states she doesn’t consider her books her greatest achievement, but her family and her time devoted to assisting others to be more vital.

5 . Amazing Castles in Spain: Four of the Best

Fans of old Disney movies will know what Snow White’s castle looks like. But did you know that it’s said to be based on a real castle in Spain — the Alcázar of Segovia? This castle is almost the shape of the front of a ship — built on a rock between two rivers. First used by the Romans, its location made it a very difficult place to attack. It’s one of thousands of amazing castles in Spain.

Many people visit Mallorca for its bars and beaches, but if you’re on this island, take a trip to Bellver Castle, just outside the main city of Palma. This 14th century castle is known for the large ring at its center, something that is unusual in European castles. People can also walk around the top of the central ring, which offers views of the castle below, as well as over the town and out to sea.

One of the most popular places in the country to visit, Granada’s Alhambra is a fortress (堡垒) built by the North Africans who ruled Spain for more than seven centuries. Visitors love the palaces inside known as the Palacios Nazaries, with their beautiful wooden ceilings. Travel website Lonely Planet says these palaces are the most beautiful Islamic buildings in Europe.

From far away, this castle in central Spain looks a little like a wedding cake — if wedding cakes were brown - brick and in the Gothic style. This castle isn’t on the top of a hill but on flat land — it was protected instead by a deep moat (护城河). It’s not too difficult to get to by car from Madrid, the Spanish capital.

6 . “I spilled soup all over the table, but it wasn’t my fault”. “I got into trouble at school, but it wasn’t my fault.” Such statements are often heard. “It’s not my fault” is actually a common response for so many people and especially teenagers. Parents complain that they’re tired of the “excuses”.

The reason why variations of “it’s not my fault” are so popular is that they get us out of guilt, blame and anger. Those emotions may come from others’ reactions or our own self-talks. In the case of adolescents, they are often trying to escape responsibility and punishment for mistakes.

Some teens would benefit from decreasing their self-blame. Those who blame themselves for things that they can’t control tend to be highly self-critical and are more likely to be anxious.

Many teens overly rely on “it’s not my fault”. However, overuse of the phrase can result in feelings of helplessness to control their own lives. Besides, “it’s not my fault” focuses a teen’s attention on what is done as opposed to what needs to be done. In trying to get them to assume responsibility, many parents attempt to convince their children that something is their fault, but the approach tends to be ineffective. A more effective approach is to face up to drawbacks to find solutions to the drawbacks actively.

People may not have caused all their problems, but they have to solve them anyway. Getting stuck in sharing blame often keeps people from moving forward effectively. What does one do if he is pushed into a deep lake? One could certainly stay in water, yelling, “It’s not my fault.” However, that is not going to get him out of water. At some point, he needs to swim to shore, regardless of the fault.

Like most things in life, freeing ourselves from blame has its advantages and disadvantages. The question isn’t what is “right”, but what is most effective in moving forward.

7 . With the ocean covering more than 70% of the Earth’s surface, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) said scientists and researchers had depended on sonar (声呐) technologies to understand and map the sea floor which had charted only about 10% of the world’s ocean. For the ocean and coastal waters in the US, the number is just around 35%.

We know less about our planet’s ocean than what we know about the far side of the moon or the surface of Mars. Part of the reason for the lack of observation is the challenge of powering an underwater camera. Researchers have used ships to recharge cameras or observed with a camera tied to a ship to solve the issue, which is expensive and unsuitable for long-term observations.

Recently, researchers at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) have taken a major step to iron out this problem by developing a battery-free, wireless underwater camera that could harvest energy underwater on its own for long periods.

To keep power consumption as low as possible, the researchers used off-the-shelf, ultra-low-power imaging sensors. The device takes color photos, even in dark underwater environments, and sends image data wirelessly through the water.

The camera is powered by sound. It changes mechanical energy from sound waves traveling through water into electrical energy that powers its imaging and communications equipment. After getting and encoding image data, the camera also uses sound waves to send the data to a receiver that reconstructs the image. Those sound waves could come from any source, like a passing ship or marine life. As it doesn’t need a power source, the camera could run for weeks on end before getting it back, enabling scientists to search remote parts of the ocean for new species.

Now that researchers have demonstrated a working prototype (原型), they plan to enhance the device so it is practical in real-world settings. For future application, these cameras may be used to take images of ocean pollution and create more accurate models to monitor climate change to better understand how climate change impacts the underwater world, and advance various undersea scientific fields.

Are you interested in what the future holds? Consider Explora Vision’s STEM (science, technology, engineering & mathematics) competition. Working in teams of two to four, students will research a particular technology and assess the ways in which it may impact lives moving forward. Participants are required to write a paper and draw web pages communicating their vision.

Grades: 7th-9th and 10th-12th

Competition Type: Regional and national

You can participate in this competition without leaving the house. eCyberMission is a web-based con test in which participants — working in teams of two to four students — use science, math and technology to solve problems facing their communities. First-place winners receive $1,000.

Grades:9th

Competition Type: Regional, state and national

Held annually, TEAMS invites students to use their engineering talent to contribute to the community. Working in groups of two to four students, participants complete real-life engineering challenges. The competition includes multiple-choice questions, an essay and a design-build component.

Grades: 9th-12th

Competition Type: State and national

In this challenge, participants work in teams of two to five students to develop products or services in response to key issues facing people around the world. The Conrad Challenge empowers students to take control of their learning and apply it to real-life situations. Winners are eligible (有资格的) for scholarships, patent assistance and aid in creating companies.

Grades: 9th-12th

Competition Type: International

9 . Humor can help you connect with other people and make unpleasant situations more bearable. There are things you can do to make yourself and others laugh.

Read more

Get your hands on everything that is funny.     1    . Hopefully, reading good jokes might inspire you to start making up your own jokes. When reading them, try to analyse the elements that make them good jokes.

Be observant

While knowing a lot can increase your ability for humor, there’s no substitute for seeing a lot. Look for the humor in everyday situations.     2    .

Learn from funny people

Whether they’re professional comedians, your parents or your friends, learning from funny people in your life is a key step to being funny yourself.     3    . Keep a note of some of the funny things they say or do. This will help you develop a toolbox of techniques you can use to be funny.

    4    

Different things make different people laugh. When you’re in a group of people you don’t know, listen to what subjects they’re talking about and what’s making them laugh. The better you know them, the easier it will be to make them laugh.

Trust in your inner sense of humor

Being funny doesn’t come in a “one-size-fits-all” package. What makes you funny is unique to you and the way you observe the world. Trust that you do have a funny bone.     5     — you just need to bring it out.