1 . A few years ago, the scientists Claudia Townsend at the University of Miami and Suzanne Shu at UCLA Anderson School of Management conducted a simple investigation into how aesthetics (美学) influence our investment decisions.

They randomly assigned 255 students to receive an annual corporate report. One of these reports was aesthetically pleasing —     1    . The other report was far less attractive. After leafing through these two reports — both of which contained the exact same factual information — the subjects were asked to estimate the lowest acceptable selling price for shares of the company.     2    .

If investors were rational agents, then the look of the report shouldn’t have mattered —they should be responding only to its content.     3     Townsend and Shu found that subjects given the prettier document insisted on an average selling price of $327.01 per share. Those shown less pretty document, meanwhile, concluded that the company’s shares were worth only $162.41. This research suggests that the design of the annual report can significantly influence our sense of value.

    4    . In recent years, scientists have also looked at how aesthetics impacts our perceptions of trust. Do we find prettier Web sites more trustworthy? There’s no logical reason why that would be the case, of course, but the human mind is full of illogical peculiarity. So far, the evidence suggests that the look of a site is highly correlated with our ratings of trust,     5    . In a paper, researchers showed that our first impressions of a Web site —they showed subjects screen shots for fifty milliseconds, which is too fast for conscious awareness —shaped our subsequent sense of trustworthiness.

2 . Intelligence (AI) is showing promise in earthquake prediction, challenging the long-held belief that it is impossible. Researchers at the University of Texas, Austin, have developed an AI algorithm (算法) that correctly predicted 70% of earthquakes a week in advance during a trial in China and provided accurate strength calculations for the predicted earthquakes.

The research team believes their method succeeded because they stuck with a relatively simple machine learning approach. The AI was provided with a set of statistical features based on the team’s knowledge of earthquake physics, and then instructed to train itself using a five-year database of earthquake recordings. Once trained, the AI provided its prediction by listening for signs of incoming earthquakes within the background rumblings (隆隆声) in the Earth.

This work is clearly a milestone in research for AI-driven earthquake prediction. “You don’t see earthquakes coming,” explains Alexandros Savvaidis, a senior research scientist who leads the Texas Seismological Network Program (TexNet). “It’s a matter of milliseconds, and the only thing you can control is how prepared you are. Even with the 70% accuracy, that’s a huge result and could help minimize economic and human losses and has the potential to remarkably improve earthquake preparation worldwide.”

While it is unknown whether the same approach will work at other locations, the researchers are confident that their AI algorithm could produce more accurate predictions if used in areas with reliable earthquake tracking networks. The next step is to test artificial intelligence in Texas, since UT’s Bureau TexNet has 300 earthquake stations and over six years worth of continuous records, making it an ideal location for these purposes.

Eventually, the authors hope to combine the system with physics-based models. This strategy could prove especially important where data is poor or lacking. “That may be a long way off, but many advances such as this one, taken together, are what moves science forward,” concludes Scott Tinker, the bureau’s director.

3 . Have you ever had the feeling that you can’t think when there is too much noise around? Did you ever think a fish could experience that feeling too? A recent paper published in Science titled “Soundscape (声景) of the Anthropocene Oceans”, combined over 10,000 scientific papers, confirming that undersea life knows that exact same feeling, more often than not. Anthropogenic (人为的) ocean noise, also known as underwater noise pollution, has created a dramatic impact on marine life due to “human-caused” activity within and neighboring our oceans.

Disney Pixar’s animated film Finding Nemo educated us about the ocean, and specifically within the ordinary world of a clown fish. A fact many may not know is that clown fish spend the first part of their lives as larvae, drifting with the current of the ocean until they become strong enough to swim against it. Once they are powerful and strong, they head home in sheltered coral reefs. There is only one drawback — the fish can’t physically see the reef, but they can hear it. The only problem is, if they can’t hear it, will they ever make it home?

Our anthropogenic ocean noise, such as cargo ships, ship and boat propellers, surfing, deep sea mining, etc. are causing destruction of marine life. According to Time, sound is the sensory signal that travels the farthest through the ocean. Anthropogenic noise drowns out the natural soundscapes, putting marine life under immense stress. Altogether, this stress then affects their general health, disrupts their behavior, physiology, reproduction and, in extreme cases, causes death. Marine life can adapt to noise pollution, however, only if they can escape it. This only renders further complications of straying (使偏离) species from their traditional breeding regions or separating them from their families.

Now, what if we told you there is already a solution? Multiple remedies, ideas and designs are currently in the works or already exist to eliminate and reverse the damage of anthropogenic ocean noise. As Time explains, from wind-powered ships to noise-reducing propellers, floating wind turbines and “bubble curtains” that muffle construction noise, the solutions are already available and in some cases, cost-effective. The authors of the paper hope it will catch the attention of policymakers, who historically speaking, have ignored the matter still to this day.

Of all the challenges ocean creatures are battling, luckily sound pollution is the easiest compromise humans can make. Once the noise has decreased, marine life will be able to better manage everything else it is up against.

________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________ Li Hua

Qiang embroidery(羌绣)is a peculiar flower in China’s folk handicrafts and reflect the wisdom of the Qiang people. It dates back to the Han Dynasty     1     it was adopted for use on clothing. The Qiang people adore nature,     2     flowers, grasses, fruits, vegetables, and animals are used as inspiration for the embroidery’s most common patterns. This type of embroidery     3     (feature) a bold use of brilliant colors.

Chen Yunzhen, from Beichuan Qiang Autonomous County in Sichuan Province, is a master of Qiang embroidery. As part of her efforts to stop the endangered technique from disappearing, Chen began visiting the     4     (surround) regions to teach embroidery. In 2014, she established a Qiang embroidery workshop. Since then, it     5     (provide) free training to over 20,000 people. Over 500     6     (local) make a living through the workshop.

To breathe new life into Qiang embroidery, Chen has continued to keep an open mind, introducing new products     7     personal accessories(配饰), notebooks and bags in addition to the traditional clothes. With her two daughters participating, who have youthful sense of innovation, Chen’s products become     8     (popular) than before among young consumers.

According to Chen, the Qiang people do not have a     9     (write) language, so Qiang embroidery must be well preserved and developed as part of efforts to sustain its culture. For Chen, Qiang embroidery is much more than a piece of art     10     (appreciate). “If you allow it to convey its real value, it will improve more people’s lives and drive rural revitalization,” she said.

8 . For rescued dogs to get adopted, they need to stand out from the pack. One teenage boy, Darius Brown, has made it his mission to make sure they do —and he does it by providing these dogs with many adorable bow ties (领结) that he sews himself.

Darius Brown’s sister, Dazhai, taught him to sew when he was 8. The youngster’s first project, a Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtle-themed bow tie, proved popular with his peers.

According to his mom, Joy, her son’s new passion was something of a godsend. Diagnosed at an early age with speech and fine-motor skill disorders, she noticed Darius’s abilities steadily improve as he painstakingly pursued his new craft. “He was so determined. He sat and watched Dazhai for months and took it all in,” Joy told The Washington Post. “He started out cutting fabric and pretty soon, he was running the sewing machine by himself.”

When Darius learned about all the family pets left homeless by Hurricane Irma in 2017, he was inspired to use his emerging talent in helping them get adopted. He soon delivered his first batch of 25 rescue bow ties to New York City’s ASPCA animal shelter, which had become a refuge (避难所) for large numbers of dogs and cats displaced by Irma.

“I saw how happy the people at the shelter were to get the bow ties and how much the dogs liked them, and I decided to make more,” he said. “I came up with a goal to give bow ties to an animal shelter in every state.”

With a little help from his mom, Darius brought his Beaux and Paws brand to life on Facebook and Instagram. The Browns also set up a GoFundMe campaign to help pay for Darius’s sewing supplies. As demand for his “collarful” wares grew, Darius also broadened his operations by starting up his own entrepreneurial website, Sir Darius Brown.

9 . Sometimes it takes a work of art to give the inspiration for advances in science. For example, Elon Musk’s dream of humans living on other planets was first inspired by Isaac Asimov’s Foundation book series. Let’s explore some of the technologies from science fiction that have been brought to life.

※Remote control

Frank Herbert’s 1965 novel Dune features a small flying robot device that is piloted remotely, one of the earliest appearances of drones (无人机) in science fiction. With the first permit for commercial drone use in the US given in 2006, drones became a reality, and can now be found taking on multiple roles. They provide new angles for photography, help farmers maintain their crops and are used in the military. Jeff Bezos has even supported the use of drones to deliver packages for his company Amazon, unveiling(公开) a delivery drone back in 2019.

※From thin air

Television show Star Trek, first appearing on screens in 1966, inspired science. One of the most unexpected examples may be the 3D printer. In 2019, researcher at the University of California, Berkeley, US, developed a 3D printer that shapes objects using rays (光线) of light.

They have named the printer the “replicator”, the same name as the device in the program to show their inspiration. The device uses light to alter the density (密度) of resin (树脂), changing the material from a liquid to a solid in order to shape the desired object.

※Starting the heart

One of the first sci-fi novels, Frankenstein by Mary Shelley has had a huge impact on science. Earl Bakken, the inventor of the pacemaker (起搏器), a device placed into the chest that helps the heart to pump blood using small electrical impulses (脉冲), was inspired by the 1931 movie adaptation of the book. “What intrigued me the most… was the creative spark of Dr Frankenstein’s electricity,” Bakken told the Atlantic.