1 . During my university days, I joined a school overseas community project coordinated by The Green Volunteers. After the trip, I ________ to try out something new — gardening, which can also be a creative hobby that allows people to express themselves through the maintenance of their garden space.

Watching my plants grow from ________ and trying different sorts of plant-related activities got me ________ right away. It has been ________; a pleasure and an honour to ________ others and to meet like-minded people. You are never ________ in the quest for a better world.

In our work, we ________ out to people to get them to be more ________ about the world we live in. The trees and shrubs (灌木) we plant also act as a source of ________ for people to create change where they are. There were several times when members of the public ________ praised on the butterflies our ________ attracted and hoped to bring them to their place.

One day, when you find yourself having some free time and having this ________ to do something “good”, find a purpose that calls out to you and that rings with your ________. It is about something bigger than you. Get your ________ dirty, feet wet, and go all out and cherish the moments. Your passions may ________ through the years, yet we hope your commitment to making our world a better place will stand firm.

2 . Not getting enough sleep may cause you to feel five to 10 years older than you really are, according to two new studies. “Sleep plays a causal role in how old individuals feel,” Leonie Balter, a sleep researcher at Stockholm University in Sweden and the author of both studies, wrote in an email.

Health and mobility issues can contribute to feeling aged before your time, but when it comes to sleep, nodding off was a key to perceiving oneself as old, according to the studies, published in the Proceedings of the Royal Society B. “Insufficient sleep causes feelings of sleepiness. Sleepiness is an important motivational state that makes us prioritize sleep and reduces our energy levels,” she said. A lack of energy and motivation can certainly contribute to feeling older while limiting a person’s ability to remain physically and socially active, both of which contribute to feeling young.

Balter and her colleagues conducted two studies. One tested how well 429 people between the ages of 18 and 70 had slept in their own homes over the previous month. For every night of poor sleep during that time, people reported feeling about a quarter of a year older than their chronological (按时间顺序) age. The second study asked 186 of the same participants to sleep in a lab for two nights, making sure they did not get more than four hours of shuteye each night. The subjective experience of aging was much greater when people experienced this degree of sleep insufficiency: On average, people felt nearly 4 years older than they really were.

“Overall, these findings emphasize the importance of enough sleep in maintaining a youthful subjective age,” said sleep researcher Dr. Chang-Ho Yun, a neurology professor at Seoul National University, who was not involved in the studies, “Feeling young is a good thing which has been associated in studies with living longer, a lower rate of dementia (痴呆), less depression and more positive characters such as optimism, hope and adaptation.”

3 . A ship that has spent decades trying to drill nearer to the earth’s mantle (地幔) is preparing for a new voyage to uncover clues to how life began.

With the plan to deepen a hole drilled nearly 20 years ago, two dozen geologists, microbiologists and other scientists will aboard the Joides Resolution to the Atlantis Massif. The hole won’t be the longest in the seafloor but would push closer than ever to the mantle and explore deeper layers of ocean crust (地壳) that haven’t been reached before. Engineers on the ship intend to lower heavy drilling tools through about 5,400 feet of water to find a hole on the seafloor about 15 inches wide. Joides engineers compared the process to standing on a chair and trying to lower a pencil tied to the end of string into the mouth of a soda bottle with a fan blowing.

Samples from the new depths will be taken to investigate whether a special mix of rock and water, Olivine, could have started life on Earth and possibly other planets. This green and magnesium-rich mineral, abundant at such depths, is critical to serpentinization (蛇纹石化), a reaction that occurs when some minerals encounter seawater. Geochemists think the process of serpentinization generates the energy and geochemical conditions favorable to the creation of organic molecules. “These are the building blocks of life,” said Susan Q. Lang, the expedition’s cochief scientist.

The new depth is thought where serpentinization occurs but where temperatures are beyond the limits at which life is known to exist. “If organic molecules are found there, it could help confirm that serpentinization leads to their creation, which contributed to the origin of life.” Dr. Lang said. Finding organic molecules in samples from serpentinization sites could also inform the search for life on other planets. “The geochemistry of fluids in the plumes of Enceladus, a moon of Saturn (土星), have been inferred by astrobiologists to be similar to the makeup of fluids found at the Atlantis Massif.” she added.

4 . The horse-face skirt, or mamianqun in Chinese, is receiving renewed attention on the fashion stage.

Far from being photoshoot prop, wearing the horse-face skirt has become almost trend among many Chinese celebrities and influencers for various international social occasions. On Douyin, China’s TikTok, individuals who sport the horse-face skirt on city streets in Paris and other international cities can easily gain millions of likes. A popular blogger on Xiaohongshu appeared on a British television program to discuss the development of the English Premier League in China while wearing a horse-face skirt.

From its first appearance during the Song Dynasty to becoming a standout representation of Chinese clothing, mamianqun has crossed nearly a millennium of history. In the current trend of traditional Chinese clothing reconstruction, how has the horse-face skirt stood out to become the most famous clothing?

Mao Zhaoxi, who is a hanfu enthusiast, told the Global Times that Hanfu is the external demonstration of culture, integrating the life philosophies, values, and aesthetic (美学) views formed and inherited (继承) by the Chinese people generation after generation. She said, “Many young people believe that the horse-face skirt is not just a fashion item, but also a cultural symbol. This shows the awakening of traditional aesthetic genes among the younger generations, indicating that the confidence in our own culture is constantly increasing.”

Moreover, Hu Xiao, one of the founders of the ancient Chinese costumes restoration team, analyzed one main reason of this phenomenon lies in the fact that the horse-face skirt has managed to remain relevant, never falling out of fashion. “Many people thought the horse-face skirt had disappeared for a while, but in fact, Chinese brides can always be seen in the costume of mamianqun.” The horse-face skirt possesses a strong sense of inheritance while also possessing fashionable features. This perhaps is the cultural DNA that enables it to become a fashion item.

The momentum (潮流) of Chinese-style clothing has begun, and how to lead the trend of Chinese-style clothing through design and how to stay at the forefront of the national trend is an issue that will not disappear in a short time.

8 . We are barely a quarter into 2024, and it is already shaping up to be an impressive year for literature lovers everywhere. With new releases spanning various fields, readers are bound to find something to bury themselves in.

Forever and Always

By Brittany J. Thurman (Author), Shamar Knight-Justice (Illustrator)

Publication date: January 16, 2024

Worry and love go hand in hand in this children’s picture book. Olivia waits anxiously for her dad to come home from work, so she makes him something to make the time go by. School Library Journal reviewed, “This book gives oxygen to all the unstated fears, perhaps burning them off, offering a reality right out of the headlines, but by leaving it child-sized has a huge impact.”

A Calamity of Souls

By David Baldacci

Publication date: April 6, 2024

Jack Lee, a white lawyer from Freeman County, has never done anything to raise his voice against racism, but this time he does. He makes the decision to represent a black man named Jerome Washington, who is accused of murdering a wealthy white couple. However, Lee doubts his decision as there are fewer chances of winning. Desire, a black lawyer from Chicago, has always fought for justice and equality, and she partners with Lee to face the legal battle against the best lawyer. Both of them fight together for a fair trial and justice.

The Djinn Waits a Hundred Years

By Shubnum Khan

Publication date: January 9, 2024

When Sana and her dad move into Akbar Manzil, Sana can’t help but be fascinated by the house there. She endlessly explores the rooms, trying to unearth the house’s mysteries. But Sana is most curious by the locked room, which once belonged to a woman named Meena, the long-dead wife of the original owner of Akbar Manzil. Within the room’s walls also lives a sorrowful djinn who now watches Sana as her interest in Meena and the house’s mysteries turns into obsession.