Here're some of the excellent inventions in 2023. Which one do you like most?
Whiter Paint
The paint on a white building reflects 80 to 90% of the sunlight that strikes it. The rest of the light warms the surrounding area, raising air-conditioning bills. But the Whiter Paint is made of chemicals that better reflect UV rays. It reflects up to 98% of the sunlight, which could reduce AC use by 40%. "The heat is reflected into deep space," says Xiulin Ruan, who led the Purdue University team that created the paint.
Duolingo app
Now you can take music lessons on a smartphone, using this app, which uses an on-screen piano to teach basics such as harmony and beat. You learn by interacting with more than 200 popular pieces of music. Just match sounds to notes and play along. "You don't need natural talent to learn music," says Karen Chow, who's a learning scientist at Duolingo.
Model A
Model A, developed by Alef Aeronautics, is a two-seat all-electric vehicle with a flight range of 110 miles. And it looks as if it were made to be parked in a garage. In July, 2023, the Federal Aviation Administration gave Alef permission to take the vehicle on test flights. The company hopes to deliver the first Model A by 2026.
Moonwalkers
They're actually battery-powered shoes with wheels. They let you walk normally—just faster and more easily. Moonwalkers, made by Shift Robotics, use AI to sense when you're speeding up or slowing down, and adjust themselves accordingly. With it, you can walk at speeds up to seven miles per hour.
Eradajere Oleita thinks she may have a partial solution to two of her country's problems: garbage and poverty. It's called the Chip Bag Project. The 26-year-old student and environmentalist from Detroit is asking a favor of local snack lovers: Rather than throw your empty chip bags into the trash, donate them so she can turn them into sleeping bags for the homeless.
Chip eaters drop off their empty bags from Doritos, Lays, and other favorites at two locations in Detroit: a print shop and a clothing store, where Oleita and her volunteer helpers collect them. After they clean the chip bags in soapy hot water, they slice them open, lay them flat, and iron them together. They use padding (衬垫) and liners (衬里) from old coats to line the insides.
It takes about four hours to sew a sleeping bag, and each takes around 150 to 300 chip bags, depending on whether they're single-serve or family size. The result is a sleeping bag that is "waterproof, lightweight, and easy to carry around", Oleita told the Detroit News.
Since its start in 2020, the Chip Bag Project has collected more than 800,000 chip bags and, as of last December, created 110 sleeping bags. Sure, it would be simpler to raise the money to buy new sleeping bags. But that's only half the goal for Oleita—whose family moved to the United States from Nigeria a decade ago with the hope of attaining a better life —and her fellow volunteers. "We are devoted to making an impact not only socially, but environmentally," she says.
And, of course, there's the symbolism of rescuing bags that would otherwise land in the trash and using them to help the homeless. It's a powerful reminder that environmental problem and poverty often go hand in hand. As Oleita told hourdetroit. com: "I think it's time to show connections between all of these issues."
Have you ever seen your cat or dog eating grass? They do so because it can help their digestion, and many wild species use natural substances to prevent and control diseases. This is called "zoo pharmacognosy" or, more commonly, animal self-medication.
Scientists have discovered that tamarin monkeys use a specific tree resin (树脂) as medicine. In the Brazilian Atlantic Forest, scientists followed several groups of them to collect data. During one of these daily studies, tamarin monkeys were observed rubbing their bodies on the trunk of a tree. At first, researchers thought that they were marking their territory, a common behaviour in this species. Botanical experts later confirmed that the tree was a species of cabreuva, which is well known for its medical properties.
Researchers decided to place camera-traps in different sites at the foot of the tree to record future visits by tamarin monkeys. The records surprisingly showed that many animals living in the forest visited it. Totally, ten species were observed. For many of them, it was the first time that behaviors similar to self-medication had been observed. More surprisingly, one species spread resin on each other's fur in pairs. In general, the species seemed to specifically visit the tree to acquire the resin and seemingly benefit from it, either healing their wounds or fighting back parasites (寄生虫).
While further studies are needed to identify the properties of the resin and thus confirm that this is indeed self-medication, the use of it suggests that cabreuva represents a common and universal drugstore for the residents of the Brazilian Atlantic Forest. It is likely to be a valuable resource helping the species maintain their magnitude by improving their health.
This discovery could have an important protection influence, as the disappearance of some trees could potentially affect the survival of some animals.
One of the biggest challenges that traditional educators face is how to unlock students' love of learning. Once students overcome their fear or unwillingness, they will be on the track of becoming motivated learners.
In order to help students discover the joy in learning, some teachers are turning to a simple but effective strategy called gamification-using game-related elements such as activities and rewards to promote students' engagement in class. With an origin in educational psychology, this approach is designed to reach students by making the learning process funny and interesting.
What's more, researches show that gamification can also make assignments less stressful. Without too much pressure, students will associate learning with curiosity and joy. Accordingly, they feel like continuing the journey because positive feelings have boosted their confidence.
But like any other strategies, gamification has its drawbacks when used incorrectly. It is very likely that some students only focus on winning rewards but have no interest in understanding concepts or learning new skills--exactly the opposite of the desired outcome. To avoid this, teachers can help prevent students from becoming wrongly motivated by choosing suitable rewards. Instead of class parties or snacks, try rewards that help students develop a passion for academic subjects.
For example, have students earn points towards a class field trip by behaving and doing their assignments, or pair subjects that a student dislikes with fun books or activities to encourage motivation. That way, they associate fun with reading, math, or other skills. More examples include competing on a leader-board, holding a talent show, or playing other team-building games. All activities and rewards need to be carefully selected and well arranged.
If you're having a hard time getting your class interested in learning, talk with them together or individually about what motivates them and include it into your student engagement strategies.
Benefits of Personality Tests
Can identifying one's personality type using the MBTI and other personality assessments really help? They may.
Better understand others
After taking a personality test and seeing our results, we can gain a better understanding of all the different perceptions and reactions that others might have to the same situation. . No personality type is "better" than any other — just different. Each perspective brings something new and interesting to the table.
Identify our likes and dislikes
Maybe we've always hated talking on the phone but never really understood why. . By using personality tests like the MBTI, we can learn more about where we lie on the extroversion/introversion and thinking/feeling continuum (连续性). This helps us better understand why we prefer certain things and dislike others.
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Learning more about our personality type can also help us discover new ways to approach challenges. Knowing what might work best for our personality type can give us new ideas on how to solve problems, deal with stress, cope with conflict, and manage our work habits.
Recognize our strengths and weaknesses
Knowing what we are good at can be important in a wide variety of situations, whether we are picking a college major or thinking about running for a seat on our local school board. For example, if we know that we are an ISTJ (introverted, sensing, thinking, and judging) on the MBTI, we might recognize that certain aspects of our personality might qualify as strengths in some situations and weaknesses in others. , it can sometimes trip us up in situations where we need to let other people take control.
A. Know which situations are ideal for us
B. Hold on to ideas about who we are
C. While they reveal truth that showcases different aspects of personality
D. Here's an overview of the many benefits of personality tests
E. This is important because we all have different ways of seeing and interacting with the world
F. While our organizational skills and carefulness can be a major strength in our work
G. Or perhaps we've always needed much time to think about a problem before making a decision
One day, I was standing on the boat when a very large female leopard seal swam by. I put on my diving gear and got my camera. I was 1 . My mouth was dry. At first, I couldn't even move. But I knew it was time to2 this mysterious creature.
I jumped into the freezing water. Immediately, the seal swam toward me. Then she put my entire camera—and much of my3 — into her mouth. Although the seal was putting me at risk, I tried not to4 any fear. After a few seconds, she let go of my head. She5 me a few more times and swam away. Then she6 with a live penguin. She even tried to show me how to7 it. She tried to push the penguin into my camera — she thought the camera was my8 ! The seal thought I was just another large animal, and she was trying to9 me, I realized.
By now, she didn't seem very10 . She stayed by me for four days. One time, she noticed another leopard seal11 behind me. She made a deep, threatening sound and12 the other seal away.
Those four days were the most incredible experience I ever had as a wildlife13 . I got some amazing pictures. I also learned that animals do not always behave the way we14 . My relationship with this powerful and15 animal will stay with me forever.
Long Chenchen, the mascot for China's upcoming Dragon Spring Festival Gala, (release) recently, with a lot of design details showing the aesthetics of Chinese cultural elements.
(celebrate) the year 2024, "Long Chenchen" has been designed as a cute yet lively dragon, colored orange and red and with a pair of doll eyes. The (seem) cute-looking dragon takes inspiration from Chinese archaeological discoveries. The design of its nose was inspired by a dragon-shaped jade item that was discovered in the Erlitou Ruins, major site in Luoyang, Central China's Henan province that witnessed the rise and fall of the Xia and Shang dynasties. The fire shape pattern on its shoulder was inspired by a bronze piece with cloud patterns dating back to the Spring and Autumn Period, multiple materials appeared and social changes were underway.
receiving many likes, the mascot has also sparked criticism. Some netizen doubt the dragon character might have been synthesized (合成) by artificial intelligence. (admit) that it has some "imperfections", CMG, a design studio said it was created by designers "one stroke after another" and that "all the details about the dragon, including its patterns, colors and face, have been revised by designers through a lot of versions."
Along with such verbal (explain), a short video showing the design team working on the mascot has been posted on Sina Weibo by CMG. The media group's response to the character's design has become a (trend) topic on Sina Weibo and has been viewed by more than 200 million netizen. " it was created by AI or human beings, I think the mascot has successfully delivered the spirit of the dragon." one netizen posted on Sina Weibo.
Andy's finger traced the lines on a blank United States map, each state represented by a number. He whispered to himself, "New Jersey is eating Pennsylvania, and Ohio is a chicken nugget." Beside him lay another paper with numbers 1—50 written down. Despite 20 minutes of intense concentration, all Andy had to show for his efforts were those numbers.
"OK, and Utah is the washing machine. No, Montana is the washing machine. Or North Dakota? Gah! They're all washing machines!" Andy was caught in his confusion.
This wasn't the first time his memory had failed him during a test. No matter how hard he studied, nothing seemed to stay in his brain for long. He had tried memory tricks, even spending nights examining an old paper map in his bedroom. It had given him a glimmer of hope, but now that hope felt distant.
The time was up, and Mr. Crane began collecting the answer sheets. Andy quickly stuffed his blank test into the pile, wanting to forget about it. Unfortunately, his brain seemed to remember only the things it should forget. During lunch, Andy stared at a map, frustrated that he had handed in a blank sheet of paper.
Andy's friend Aaron shrugged. "You only need a 70 to pass."
"Yeah, well it's hard to get a 70 when you hand in a blank sheet of paper," Andy mumbled, frowning.
Aaron popped a grape into his mouth. "Well, Mr. Crane will let you retake (补考) it tomorrow."
Andy was the only one standing at Mr. Crane's desk after school. He apologized quickly, head drooping. But instead of scolding him, Mr. Crane patted his shoulder, saying, "I think you are trying, but you might learn better by being active. Just practice more!"
Andy looked into Mr. Crane's eyes, finding comfort in the teacher's understanding gaze. Mr. Crane invited Andy to help him organize a pile of magnets (磁铁), each with the name of a state on it. On the wall hung a large magnetic map — part of a review game the class had been playing.
注意：1. 续写词数应为150左右；2. 请按如下格式在相应位置作答。
As Andy arranged the magnets, an idea suddenly came into his mind.
……
When doing homework, Andy was told he scored an 88 on the retake.
