3 . Philippine pineapple farmers used to be bothered by pineapple leaves. Fortunately, their trouble has been removed by Carmen Hijosa, a Spanish researcher who spent eight years developing a new textile (纺织物) she calls Pinatex. This kind of new cloth materials, made from pineapple leaf fibres which are harvested and stripped from pineapple leaves by farmers, are very fine and strong and flexible. These characteristics make them quite popular.

Since launching commercially in the mid-2015, Pinatex has been used by about 500 producers including a recent cooperation with fashion house Hugo Boss on a pair of vegan sneakers. Smaller fashion companies have been inspired by its unique look and feel.

Timothy Turner, creative director for fashion brand Altiir whose entire collection of biker style jackets are made from Pinate x says, “it’s got a unique texture. I’ve worn this for about a year, and it ages to your body really gracefully and shapes to your body when it gets wet; it dries like leather, and it behaves like leather in every way except it’s completely sustainable.”

The long fibre is pulled out through a process called decortication (去皮), which is done at the plantation by the farming community. Ananas has developed the first automated decorticating machine to assist with this process, allowing farmers to use greater quantities of their waste leaves. Once the leaves have been stripped of fibre, the leftover biomass can be used as a nutrient-rich natural fertilizer or a biofuel, so nothing is wasted. The fibre then gets degummed (脱胶) and undergo an industrial process to become a non-woven material, which forms the base of Pinatex.

The rolls of non-woven materials are then transported to Spain for specialised finishing. This unique process is what gives Pinatex its leather-like appearance, creating a textile that is soft and flexible, yet very strong. The finished textile is distributed to designers directly by Ananas Anam, who uses it as a sustainable alternative to leather in footwear and fashion accessories, clothing, interior furnishing and automotive cushions.

7 . Nick Lee, also known as Magic Nick, tries to bring joy to seriously ill children and their families during a child’s time in hospital. As a magician, Lee works with the ________ Spread A Smile, which sends numerous artists, including magicians, into hospitals to entertain ________ patients who are being treated for life-threatening illnesses. The aim is to ________ lasting memories for families at the ________ of times.

Before Lee worked with the charity, two of his ________ had been in Great Ormond Street Hospital and had been ________ there by Spread A Smile magicians. ________ the joy his nephew experienced from magicians encouraged him to use his talents to ________ in the lives of others.

________ from common belief, Lee did not grow up in a family of magicians. ________, he is the first magician in his family. He got his first magic set when he was three, and at 16 he started doing shows ________ on the stage. Lee has dyslexia (阅读障碍), a condition that ________ the way a person learns. He admits that maths and English have always been a ________ for him, but he remains optimistic and admits, “Performing magic seems to be going quite well.”

Lee ________ significant insights from the children he meets in hospitals. He says seeing the children’s strength has given him ________ as well. “I might be having a bad day, but this person is ________ having a much worse day than I am and they’re still ________,” he reflects.

By means of his work with Spread A Smile, Lee has been able to bring a sense of magic and ________ to children and their families. His ________ to his career and his sympathy for others make him a ________ magician, both on and off the stage.

8 . Far too often, we look at ourselves in the mirror and tell ourselves we aren’t good enough.     1    . Here’re some tips on how to accept yourself.

Accept your individuality

View your weaknesses as what makes you a unique person. As humans, we all have weaknesses that set us apart from others. Instead of viewing your weaknesses as bad things, turn them into what makes you an individual.     2    . However, that same quality may also mean you’re awesome at art or English.

    3    

We are often our own worst critics, and we tend to hold ourselves to standards that we wouldn’t expect of other people. Think about the standards you set for yourself, and then think about if you’d hold a friend or loved one to the same standards. If you wouldn’t, then you don’t need to hold yourself to those standards either.

Don’t compare yourself to others

Stick to your own standards. While it can be tough, try not to compare yourself to your peers (同龄人).     4    , and you don’t need to match someone else’s journey. Be grateful for what you have, and think about how far you’ve come to make it where you are today.

Surround yourself with people who support you

    5    . Your friends and family members often have your best interests at heart, and they’ll want to improve your self-confidence as much as they can. On the other hand, try to watch out for people pointing out your weaknesses often. Spending too much time with them can make you feel worse about yourself.

10 . Painting is an ancient medium and even with the introduction of photography, film and digital technology, it still has remained a persistent mode of expression. So many paintings have come into being over the years but only a small percentage of them could be described as “timeless classics”. The following are some of the most famous paintings of all time.

Painted between 1503 and 1519,Leonardo da Vinci’s attractive portrait has been a subject of controversy since the day it was made, due to two questions: Who’s the subject and why is she smiling? A number of theories for the former have been provided over the years: That she’s the wife of the Florentine merchant Francesco di Bartolomeo del Giocondo and that she’s Leonardo’s mother, Caterina. As for that famous smile, its quality has driven people crazy for hundreds of years.

Whistler’s Mother, or Arrangement in Grey and Black No.1,as it’s actually titled, speaks to the artist’s ambition to pursue art for art’s sake. James Abbott McNeill Whistler painted the work in his London studio in 1871. Whistler’s mother Anna is pictured as one of several elements locked into an arrangement of right angles. Her severe expression fits in with the rigidity of the composition, and it’s somewhat ironic to note that despite Whistler’s formalist intentions, the painting became a symbol of motherhood.

As one of the most significant works produced during the Northern Renaissance, this composition is believed to be one of the first paintings finished in oils. It portrays an Italian merchant and a woman who may or may not be his bride. In 1934.the celebrated art historian Erwin Panofsky proposed that the painting is actually a wedding contract. What can be reliably said is that the piece used orthogonal perspective to create a sense of space. It feels like a painting you could step into.