We already know the fastest, least expensive way to slow climate change: Use less energy. With a little effort, and not much money, most of us could reduce our energy diets by 25 percent or more—doing the Earth a favor while also helping our wallets.

    Not long ago, my wife, PJ, and I tried a new diet—not to lose a little weight but to answer an annoying question about climate change. Scientists have reported recently that the world is bending up even faster than predicted only a few years ago, and that the consequences could be severe if we don't keep reducing emissions(排放) of carbon dioxide (CO₂ ) and other greenhouse gases that are trapping heat in our atmosphere.

    We decided to try an experiment. For one month we recorded our personal emissions of CO₂. We wanted to see how much we could cut back, so we went on a strict diet. The average US household(家庭) produces about 150 pounds of CO₂  a day by doing common-place things like turning on air-conditioning or driving cars. That's more than twice the European average and almost five times the global average, mostly because Americans drive more and have bigger houses. But how much should we try to reduce?

    For an answer, I checked with Tim Flannery, author of The Weather Makers: How Man is Changing the Climate and What it Means for Life on Earth. In his book, he had challenged readers to make deep cuts in personal emissions to keep the world from reaching extremely important tipping points, such as the melting(融化) of the ice sheets in Greenland or West Antarctica. "To stay below that point, we need to reduce CO₂  emissions by 80 percent," he said.

    Good advice, I thought. I'd opened our bedroom windows to let in the wind. We'd gotten so used to keeping our air-conditioning going around the clock. I'd almost forgotten the windows even opened. We should not let this happen again. It's time for us to change our habits if necessary.

    Top UK Summer Camps

    Oxford Summer Academy,Oxford

    The Oxford Summer Academy is a specialized program for 16-19-year-olds who want a taste of life at one of the world's most well-known universities.Activities range from morning tutorials（辅导）to afternoon electives that are designed to broaden students' understanding of what they'll be studying and how to be excellent in their chosen fields.

    Ardmay House,Long Loch,Scotland

    Ardmay House is the sort of adventure camp that makes adults jealous.Campers are presented with Lord of The Rings type settings to feel and try new things.With activities like climbing,beach art,fashion shows and quiz nights, kids are brought closer to nature and their peers in a fun and safe environment.

    Uppingham Summer School,Uppingham

    The Uppingham Summer School offers an impressive variety of summer courses from arts and crafts to theatre, cookery and sports.It was their Creativity Technologies Powerhouse that caught our eye when researching camps for this article.The course covers everything from iPhone app and design to computer game design,film-making,robot design and music technology.It's basically a course that takes them through the most exciting technology among the modem media.It's an amazing environment for kids to learn and grow in.

    Learn and Experience,Yorkshire

    Learn and Experience focuses on giving kids from the UK and abroad a chance to interact and have a good time with one another,an experience that makes them grow as individuals.With half the campers coming from abroad,it's a golden opportunity for curious kids to put their geography classes into practice without having to leave the country.

    Every country has its heroes .They may be soldiers or sports people, doctors or film stars. We admire（钦佩） them for their courage, their strength, their devotion（忠诚） to duty or their talent. Their example inspires us to live better, to work harder.

    Terry Fox was a young student who loved life and who loved sports. When he was just 18 years old a terrible tragedy happened: his right leg had to be cut off because of cancer. Such an experience would have destroyed a weaker person — but Terry Fox was a fighter. He refused to give up. Instead, while he was recovering from the operation, an idea slowly formed in his mind. He decided he would run across Canada, in order to raise money for cancer research.

    Slowly and carefully, he began to train. Every step was extremely painful, but he insisted, increasing the distance covered day by day. Sixteen months later, in the spring of 1980, he was ready for the long journey across Canada — his Marathon of Hope .It was a time of inspiration and heart breaking emotion. Through television, every home saw his particular way of running, a kind of half- hop and half- run. Thousands of people lined the route to encourage him and to wish him well. They also gave money to fight cancer. Then, on 1st September 1980, after 143 days and more than 5000 kilometers completed, everything came tragically to an end Terry had to stop. He lived on for another nine months and died on June 18th 1981. He was almost 23.

    The morning had been a disaster. My tooth was aching, and I'd been in an argument with a friend. Her words still hurt: “The trouble with you is that you won't put yourself in my place. Can't you see things from my point of view?” I shock my head stubbornly — and felt the ache in my tooth. I'd thought I could hold out till my dentist came back from holiday, but the pain was really unbearable. I started calling the dentists in the phone book, but no one could see me immediately. Finally, at about lunchtime, I got lucky.

    “If you come by right now,” the receptionist said, “the dentist will fit you in.”

    I took my purse and keys and rushed to my car. But suddenly I began to doubt about the dentist. What kind of dentist would be so eager to treat someone at such short notice? Why wasn't he as busy as the others?

    In the dentist's office, I sat down and looked around. I saw nothing but the bare walls and I became even more worried. The assistant noticed my nervousness and placed her warm hand over my ice-cold one.

    When I told her my fears, she laughed and said, “Don't worry. The dentist is very good.”

    “How long do I have to wait for him?” I asked impatiently.

    “Come on, he is coming. Just lie down and relax. And enjoy the artwork.” the assistant said.

    “The artwork?” I was puzzled.

    The chair went back. Suddenly I smiled. There was a beautiful picture, right where I could enjoy it: on the ceiling. How considerate the dentist was! At that moment, I began to understand what my friend meant by her words.

    What a relief!

    Many high school students consider a college education useless. Therefore, they choose not to go to college. If you're one of them, think again. Here are some reasons why you should go to college and receive a good education there.

    Schools and universities are the first sources of knowledge. We take that knowledge later on to build our careers after graduation. More knowledge will be gained after you start working, but without an education, that job will not be within easy reach. Knowledge leads to knowledge.

    While limited within the walls of the educational institutions, we openly explore other cultures of the world. We come to know that ours is not the only culture. Other cultures have valuable insights to share, enriching our own Education also makes us want to travel and interact with various cultures, broadening our horizons.

    When there's a downturn in the economy, those who attended college will be more likely to find a new job than those who only finished grade school and have a limited skills set. The more education you have, the more chances you will get to improve the quality of your life as you have a better job and earn a higher salary.

    When you're skillful and knowledgeable, you get to "rub knees" with people of similar backgrounds and tastes. It means a good education leads to excellent networking. Good networking can benefit you a lot in your later life.

    A good education makes you a more interesting person. You can talk about ideas and events instead of just other people and what's on sale in stores. An educated person doesn't gossip, having a preference to discuss ideas and listen to what other people have to say.

Biofuels (生物燃料), gained from plants and animal matter, are a key solution to the environmental problems caused by fuels like coal. "Bioalcohol (生物酒精) is the most common biofuel and is produced by sugars found in materials such as corn. With some engine redesigned, it can be used directly by cars, buses, etc. ," says Professor Daniel Tan, "12 percent of transport fuel could come from biofuels, especially bioalcohol, by 2030. "

But a 2016 study of biofuels said, "Bioalcohol presently is mostly produced with food crops. Altogether, the environmentally-friendly biofuels rely on about 2-3 percent of the global water and land used for agriculture, which could feed a large number of hungry people. "

Energy experts have therefore been trying to deal with the problem. Recent research led by an international team found that the agave (龙舌兰) plant might offer a way out. This plant tends to be the right bioalcohol source to supersede others such as sugarcane (甘蔗) and corn.

Daniel Tan explains that the agave can be grown in unfavorable conditions and is not a major food crop. "It can grow in areas that lack water and rainfall without being watered by farmers, and it does not compete with food crops or put demands on limited water. This kind of useful plant is recently being grown in Australia. It can survive Australia's hot summers," he says.

The study finds that sugarcane produces just a little more fuel per square meter each year than the agave. However, the agave outperforms sugarcane in a range of areas, including pollution to the earth, and water using. The agave uses 69 percent less water than sugarcane and 46 percent less water than corn for the same amount of fuel produced. As for corn，it produces less fuel per square meter each year than the agave.

However, Daniel Tan states: "The first generation of bioalcohol from the agave recently faces a big competition from oil, whose recent low price makes it far more attractive to customers. Without some policy support from the government, bioalcohol production from the agave faces big challenges. "