1 . Ways to Put Down Your Smartphone

For most people, when they wake up in the morning, the first thing coming to their mind is to find their smartphone. If it is the same to you, it is time for you to put your smartphone down.     1    

Read a newspaper and be amazed at how relaxing it is to read through the day’s news. We will find our attention has increased and we will enjoy reading it.     2     Even the New York Times is only $9 a week for home delivery, plus digital access.

Take your old radio out again, plug it in, and be amazed at how vital radio still can be. More importantly, you won’t be attracted to check other apps and websites.

We love Facebook or Twitter to communicate with friends and relations.     4     And turn off app and email information at some other time in any other places, so you aren’t attracted by them. Pile up your phones.

Today, it seems nearly impossible to put your phone down for 60 minutes. However, whether dining at home or out on the town, stick to (坚持) no-device policy.     5     Even better, you can also have a water place them out of site, so no one can break the policy.

Since last year, the haze (霜)weather had happened many times in my hometown, when it has done great harm to our life. What’s worse, many people have to see the doctor due with serious diseases caused by the haze.

People have realized the harm effects on their health and the importance of protect the environment. Measures have taken to reduce the haze. The government suggests each citizen goes to work by public transport.

As for me, I go to school by bike and on foot every day. Besides, I will tell the others to protect the environment, too. Now, it’s time for each of us to contribute to the environmental protection, doesn’t it?

5 . I still keep the photo taken by my mom and treasure it as my life. That was many years ago when I was having summer _______ in college and was moving into an apartment. I was carrying two_______ with everything I was going to need to _______ the six weeks of course. It’s the last time I can remember ever traveling that _______.

Since then, my belongings have _______. Though most of them like my furniture are_______ , there are occasions when I feel weighed down by all of them. I’m sure I’ll need two trucks _______ two suitcases if I ever _______again.

However, one thought brings me _______ . It’s the knowledge that when I make my ________ journey from this world - I’m dead, I won’t ________   any of those things with me. The only things I’ll take will be what I’ve packed in the suitcase of my________. I’ll be carrying with me every ________ thing I ever did, every loving thought

I ever shared and every bit of ________ I ever brought into this world to make others laugh. I’ll be carrying all the goodness I gave to others, all the ________I was able to share and all the joy I created. These things won’t be weighing me down. Instead, I’ll be surely ________.

As you’re ________ for your own final trip - completely prepared, make sure you should not make your ________ heavy. Make sure the belongings in your home________ take second place to the love in your heart. When you ________ it in the heaven, all the angels will smile.

6 . Earth Hour is organized by the World Wide Fund for Nature. It’s a big event usually at the end of March every year. On this evening, people “ go dark”.    1    

It’s true that turning off lights for one hour saves only a small amount of power.    2    On one level, joining in Earth Hour makes people think about the problem of climate change and what we can do in everyday life to protect nature. But on another level, a large number of people’s acting together sends a powerful message to governments and companies.    3     They begin considering green issues and protecting wildlife when making big decisions.

The logo (标识) of Earth Hour is “60+”. The number 60 is for the 60 minutes of Earth Hour.     4     In fact, people who join in Earth Hour say that taking part makes them want to do more for the environment.

    5    Musicians give concerts by playing acoustic (原声的) instruments instead of electric ones, and using candles instead of electric lights. Famous cooks create special recipes for families to prepare and eat by candlelight. Tree-planting activities, group walks and runs are also among the choices.

7 . Ants know when an earthquake is about to strike, researchers have discovered. Their behavior changes greatly before the quake and they resume normal functioning only a day after it. Gabriele Berberich of the University of Duisburg-Essen in Germany presented these findings according to Live Science.

Berberich and her team discovered that red wood ants preferred to build their homes right along active faults (断层)in Germany. They counted 15,000 mounds (土堆)lining the faults. These faults are the places where the earth breaks in earthquakes.

Using a special camera that tracked changes in activity, Berberich and her team tracked the ants round the clock for three years. They found that the ants’ behavior changed only when the quake was over magnitude 2.0. There were 10 earthquakes between magnitude 2.0 and 3.2 during this period, and many smaller ones. Humans can also sense quakes over magnitude 2.0 only.

According to Berberich, normal ant activity is made up of going about collecting food during the day and resting in the night. But before an earthquake, the ants didn’t go back to their mound in the night and moved around outside it. This strange behavior continued till a day after the earthquake, Berberich told a news conference, according to Live Science.

How do ants know an earthquake is coming? Berberich suggested that they could either be picking up changing gas or noting small changes in the earth’s magnetic fields (磁场). “ Red wood ants have special cells which can sense changes in carbon dioxide levels. They also have special cells for discovering electromagnetic fields,” she said. Berberich and her team are planning to continue the research in areas where there are more and bigger earthquakes.

8 . Though many of us may have been away somewhere nice last summer , few would say that we’ve “summered”. “Summer” is clearly a noun - a verbed noun.

In our childhood, we all learned the difference between a noun and a verb. With such a clear definition, it was easy to notice the difference. Not so in adulthood, when we are expected to “foot” the bill and “chair” meetings. Chances are that you didn’t feel uncomfortable about those verbed nouns.

“The verbing of nouns is as old as the English language,” says Patricia, a former editor at The New York Times Book Review. Experts found that 20% of all English verbs were originally nouns. And it seems to be snowballing. Since 1900, about 40% of new verbs have come from nouns.

Even though the conversion (转化)is quite common, plenty of language experts disagree with it. William Strunk Jr. and E. B. White have this to say, “Many nouns lately have been pressed into service as verbs. Not all are bad, but some are in doubt. ”The Chicago Manual of Style takes a similar standpoint, advising writers to use verbs with great care.

“Sometimes people dislike a new verb because they refuse to accept what is unfamiliar to them,” says Patricia. That’s why we’re comfortable “ hosting” a party, but we might feel upset by the thought of “medaling” in sports. So are there any rules for verbing? Benjamin Dreyer, copy chief at Random House, doesn’t offer a rule, but suggests that people think twice about “verbifying”(使动词化)a noun if it’s easily replaced by an already existing popular verb. Make sure it’s descriptive but not silly-sounding, he says.

In the end, however, style is subjective (主观的).The easy conversion of nouns to verbs has been part of English grammar for centuries. It is one of the processes that make English “ English”. Not every new word passes into general use, but as for trying to end verbing altogether, forget it.

9 . Most teens are trying to find their purposes in life. However, Gitanjali Rao, a 15-year-old girl has been coming up with creative solutions to worldwide problems since she was 10. It is, therefore, not surprising that the teen has won the honor of “America’s Top Young Scientist”.

In the 3rd grade, Rao was inspired to do something after seeing the city’s primary water supply in her hometown was polluted by a factory nearby and that high levels of lead (铅)made its way into people’s drinking water.

After 2 months’ research, Rao designed a tool that used sensors to instantly discover lead in water. Called Tethys, after the Greek Goddess (女神)of freshwater, it informs the residents via an app if their drinking water contains lead. The design earned her the 3M Young Scientist Challenge in 2017. She is now working with scientists and medical professionals to test Tethys’ potential and hopes the device will be ready for market in the near future.

Later, Rao took on another social issue — drug (毒品)addiction. Her app, called Epione, which won the Health Pillar Prize in May 2019, is designed to catch drug addiction in young adults before it’s too late.

More recently, the teen has developed an app named Kindly, which uses AI technology to find possible signs of cyberbullying (网络欺凌). When users type in a word or phrase, Kindly is able to pick it up if it’s bullying, and then it gives the choice to edit it or send it the way it is. It gives them the chance to rethink what they are saying so that they know what to do next time.

Gitanjali Rao has been selected from 5, 000 equally impressive nominees (被提名人)for TIME’s first-ever “Kid of the Year”.

10 . Take time to walk in Shakespeare’s footsteps, without the usual crowds. Your visit to Shakespeare’s Birthplace will help us to make sure that Shakespeare’s heritage survives this difficult period for future visitors to enjoy.

To keep our visitors and staff safe, we have introduced a timed ticket system. All tickets must be booked in advance. Groups larger than 6 are not allowed to book unless they are part of the same household. See below for more details and read about the extra safety measures we’ve put in place.

Please note that Anne Hathaway’s Cottage, Shakespeare’s New Place, Mary Arden’s Farm and Hall’s Croft are closed.

Pre-booking

We’ll be unable to allow you entry without a pre-booked timed entry ticket. Tickets will be sold every Friday, up to 2 weeks in advance.

Before your visit

Please remember the following things, and check our website and social media for updates before travelling.

●If showing COVID-19 symptoms (症状), please stay at home.

●Wear a mask in indoor spaces (unless noted).

●We conduct temperature checks.

●Bag checks are in operation.

●We do not offer baggage store facilities.

●Be ready for cashless payment.

NHS COVID-19 Test and Trace app

Visitors are encouraged to download the NHS COVID-19 Test and Trace app before arrival at Shakespeare’s Birthplace and “check-in” by scanning the QR code available at the ticket desk and entrance to the shop.