1 . The number of American seniors is growing more quickly than any other portion of the population.     1    

This is, of course, good news. However, an aging population has needs that are not being met. One of these needs is public transportation.     2     There is a growing need for the benefits that public transportation can provide older Americans.

American’s older citizens require increased mobility. With better public transportation, seniors would have more options when choosing where to live. They would also have more choices when deciding how and where they would like to travel.    3    

According to the U.S. Census Bureau, more than 35 million Americans were 65 years old or older on the year 2000. Because there was a baby boom-an increase in births-between 1946 and 1964, the senior population in America will grow much faster than the rest of the population. Many older people already live in suburban locations that lack transit options, and as the baby boomers age, the number of older citizens who live in these areas will continue to increase.

    4     Not only does it affect their ability to take care of their basic needs, it also affects their ability to make contributions to their neighbors and society as a whole. This kind of feeling is felt most by those who are over the age of 85 and who have medical conditions that prevent them from driving.

Many people think that the answer to helping mobility for an aging population is simple. They believe that public transportation systems must be upgraded and expanded so that seniors have the resources available to meet their transportation needs.

3 . Whether you're a citizen, consumer or investor, it is fast becoming a key life skill to make out greenwashing, a word meaning a company claims that its products are environmentally friendly but actually not green at all. Misleading or not proved claims about benefits to climate can make it harder for people to make informed decisions. They can also weaken real efforts by companies to clean up their act and deal with the climate crisis.

The basic problem is a lack of clarity. Indeed, when it comes to spotting greenwashing, it can actually be more helpful to focus on the color grey—because it is the many grey areas that have helped make greenwashing appear in particular places. These grey areas might be around measurements, definitions, best practice, standards or regulations. Even the language we use is very imprecise, leaving lots of room for vagueness, confusion or complete cheating. For instance, what do words such as “green”, “sustainable” and “eco” even mean? You have no standards, measurements or definitions to judge by.

These problems are increasingly important when it comes to the greenwashing of investment products, such as pensions and investment funds. In recent years, there has been a sharp rise in consumer demand for funds that invest according to environmental, social and governance criteria, often referred to as ESG funds. According to the financial data provider Morningstar, the value of assets(资产) held in UK funds grew from £29bn at the beginning of 2017 to £71bn by the end of 2020.

With that much money at risk for high profits, misleading claims can effectively hamper the flow of money and resources into really green new plans and businesses, preventing global efforts from dealing with the climate emergency. “I describe it as the 'teenage years' of responsible investing, with a lot of experimentation, and a lot of people trying out new things.” says Ashley Hamilton Claxton.

4 . The public must be able to understand the basics of science to make informed decisions. Perhaps the most dramatic example of the negative consequences of poor communication between scientists and the public is the issue of climate change, where a variety of factors has contributed to widespread mistrust and misunderstanding of scientists and their research. The issue of climate change also illustrates how the public acceptance and understanding of science (or the lack of it) can influence governmental decision-making with regard to regulation, science policy and research funding.

However, the importance of effective communication with a general audience is not limited to hot issues like climate change. It is also critical for issues such as the genetic basis for a particular behavior or the use of animal models because in these areas, the public understanding of science can also influence policy and funding decisions. Furthermore, with continuing scientific advances, more non-scientists will need to be able to analyze complex scientific information to make decisions that directly affect their quality of life.

Science journalism is the main channel for the popularization of scientific information among the public. Much has been written about how the relationship between scientists and the media can shape the efficient communication of scientific advances to the public. Good science journalists are specialists in making complex topics accessible to a general audience, while sticking to scientific accuracy. Unfortunately, pieces of science journalism can also oversimplify and generalize their subject material. As a result, the basic information conveyed is difficult to understand or obviously wrong.

Even though scientists play a part in conveying information to journalists and ultimately the public, too often the blame for ineffective communication is placed on the side of the journalists. I believe that, at least in part, the problem lies in places other than the interaction between scientists and members of the media. It exists because we underestimate how difficult it is for scientists to communicate effectively with a diversity of audiences, and most scientists do not receive formal training in science communication.

New look on the Museum

Museums have changed. They are no longer places for the privileged few or for bored vacationers to visit on rainy days.

At a science museum in Ontario, Canada you can feel your hair stand on end as harmless electricity passes through your body. At the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City, you can look at 17 century instruments while listening to their music. At the Modern Museum in Sweden, you can put on costumes provided by the Stockholm Opera. As these examples show, museums are reaching out to new audiences, particularly the young, the poor and the less educated members of the population. As a result, attendance is interesting.

Many museums have changed in appearance. Some old, gray museums have been rebuilt, and the newer ones are open and modern in their architecture. Inside, there is modern lighting, color, and sound. Instead of displaying everything they own, museum directors show fewer objects and leave open spaces where visitor can gather and sit down. They also bring together in one display a group of objects drawn drawn from various parts of the museum to represent the whole lifestyle of region or a historical period. In one room, for instance, you may find materials, clothing, tools, cooking pots, furniture, and art works of a particular place and time.

More and more museum directors are realizing that people learn best when they can somehow become part of what they are seeing. In many science museums, for example, there are no guided tours. The visitor is encouraged to touch, listen, operate, and experiment so as to discover scientific principles for himself. The purpose is not only to provide fun but also to help people feel at home in the world of science. The theory is that people who do not understand science will probably fear it, and those who fear science will not use it to the best advantage.

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6 . At the start of every vacation, many parents spend their time wondering: What will the children do? When I was a child in the 1950s, the answer was easy. The children would play. We played feely with other children, in our own chosen ways, away from adults. When we got bored, we found ways to overcome it. We took up _________, took risks, sometimes hurt ourselves, got into trouble, and _________ how to get out of it.

During such play, we acquired knowledge and skills that couldn’t be taught to us in school. We learned how to take _________, make our own decisions, solve our own problems, get along with peers as equals, experience fear and then find ways to manage it, experience anger and then find ways to overcome it. We also discovered our interests, _________ them, and became skilled at them—interests that for many of us later became _________.

Over the past 60 years, however, we’ve seen a huge _________ in children’s freedom and opportunity to play on their own. Over this same period, we’ve also seen a dramatic increase in the rates of _________ and anxiety disorders among young people- five to eight times what they were in the 1950s.

Our children love to play in moderately _________ ways. Through such play, they acquire the physical, social and emotional capacities required for healthy development. They learn to get along with one another by playing socially, and they learn to deal with emergencies by playing in ways that involve risk.

Why is such play so _________? It can cause injury, so why hasn’t natural selection __________ the inner desire for it? We have some clues from laboratory experiments.

Researchers have found that when young rats or monkeys are deprived (剥夺) of play during critical periods in their development, the animals grow up as emotional cripples (跛者). They are __________ disabled when placed in new, slightly frightening environments to which normally raised animals would __________. They repeated between incapacitating fear and inappropriate aggression when placed with __________ peers. So it is no surprise to me that play-deprived human children grow up insufficient in the social and emotional skills required to deal well with life’s inevitable stressors (应激源). They may also grow up __________ the abilities to think creatively, take initiative, and assume responsibility.

We have deprived children of free, risky play, probably for their own good. In the process we have denied them the opportunity to learn how to be __________ by playing in risky ways.

Our children need more freedom, not more adult control.

The Japan that can’t keep up

The spotlight has cost losses of Kobe Steel, Japan’s largest steelmaker, whose customers include Ford Motor and Boeing. Its market of $ 2.7 billion is about $ 1.7 billion less than before it admitted to the fake data. As the criticism over Kobe’s behavior     1    , Japan’s reputation for excellence may be the biggest loser.

Japanese manufactures were once held in awe (敬畏) for their mastery of     2     manufacturing and continuous improvement, which revolutionized business practices the world over. But an increasing number of companies in China, South Korea, and elsewhere are now capable of competing with — and often beating — Japan’s long-established enterprises, forcing them to scramble (争抢).

The latest     3     of just how desperate many Japanese companies have become to stay ahead of foreign rivals: Kobe Steel Ltd.     4     this month that for years it had faked data on the quality of its aluminum, copper, and steel products. Now Kobe Chief Executive Officer Hiroya Kawasaki is leading an internal committee to     5     quality issues. And the U.S. Department of Justice has requested Kobe Steel     6     documents related to the data, the company said, adding that it will cooperate.

Unfortunately for Japan Inc.’s reputation as a trusted supplier, such     7     have repeatedly commanded headlines. Japan obviously doesn’t have a monopoly on corporate shenanigans (诡计), but fraud is particularly     8     for the nation because its flagship manufactures have banked for years on a reputation for quality. “Japanese manufactures are very aware that their brand, their reputation, the     9     of their business rest on quality,” an expert says.

Two major factors seem to be pushing the nation’s manufactures to cross the line. First, Japanese companies face enormous pressure from upstart Chinese rivals. Secondly, a whistle blower protection law     10     in Japan in 2006 has increased the chance of wrongdoing coming to light — and the digitization of records and internal conversations has made it easier for incriminating data to be passed along to regulations or authorities.