The Owl Count

    Annie slept in the front of the seat with her father drovethrough the darkness. “We're almost there!” Dad announced cheerfully. “Soon we'll be observing and counting owls at the state park.” Yawning, Annie noddedand smiled. The time was 4:30 a.m. Looking out into the darkness, Annie remembered learning in school that most owls are active at night, when they hunt for food. During the day they sleep in hard-to-find spots.

    “Dad, why do you need to count owls?” she asked. “It's importantfor the scientists to have current information about bird populations,” he explained. “We want to know which birds have decreased in number and whether any new kinds of birds are coming into a certain area. You and I will write down the kinds of birds that we see today and keep a record of how many times we see each kind. Then we'll send out a report to a scientific organization that is collecting about birds from people all over the country.”

    Dad pulled into the parking lot of the state park. Then, with flashing in hand, they began their hike into the woods. Annie zipped up hercoat and tried to keep from trembling. She had not expected the morning to beso cold. Luckily her gloves were in her pocket.

    Suddenly Annie's father stopped and gestured for her to bestill. Obeying, Annie did not take another step. She thought she heard a low crying up head. “That's certainly a screech owl,” her father whispered. “Let's get a look at it.” After looking more closely, Annie could see that it was asmall owl. Sensing danger, the owl narrowed its eyes and pulled its feathers tightly against its body. Annie carefully wrote down in her notebook that theyhad seen a screech owl.

    Walking a little farther, they came to a tall oak tree. “Thislooks like a perfect spot to attract owls,” Dad said, “I'm going to play a recording of common call of the barred owl. Maybe we can get one to answer." Annie could hardly believe her ear. The recorded call sounded as if the birdwere asking, “Who cooks for you?” Moments later Annie thought she heard areturn call in the distance. She held her breath and waited. Suddenly a huge bird landed very quietly on a branch above them.

    Annie had long forgotten how cold it was. She stood in wonder, shining her flashlight on the bird and studying it carefully. The barred owl was nearly two feet tall. Grey feathers surrounded its dark eyes. The bird did not stay long, but it did not matter. Annie would never forget the image of the powerful barred owl.

The Penguins

    Skipper and his fellow penguins were originally just supporting roles in animated film Madagascar (2005). But in 2008 they took leading roles in their own TV series, and in 2014 starred in the film Penguins of Madagascar. The penguins' wisdom and humor not only appeal to kids, but also serve adult audiences well. So, it's not surprising that they get their own movie.

Scrat

    A small and furry squirrel with a long tail from animated movie Ice Age (2002), Scrat played a supporting role but has won the hearts of both children and grown-ups with his persistence(毅力). In the film, his chasing after his prized acorn(橡子) causes an Earth-shattering geological event. Scrat is a big part in the lasting attraction of the movie series Ice Age. Today, Scrat has his own animated mini-movies.

    Cheating can happen in a lot of different ways. When people cheat, it's not fair to other people, like the kids who studied for the test or who were the true winners of a game.

Many people like the action of cheating. It makes difficult things seem easy, like getting all the right answers on the test. But it doesn't solve the problem of not knowing the material and it won't help on the next test — unless the person cheats again.

    Some people lose respect for cheaters and think less of them. The cheaters themselves may feel bad because they know they are not really earning that good grade. And, if they get caught cheating, they will be in trouble at school, and maybe at home, too.

    Some kids cheat because they're busy or lazy and they want to get good grades without spending the time studying. Other kids might feel like they can't pass the test without cheating. Even when there seems to be a “good reason” for cheating, cheating isn't a good idea.

    If you were sick or upset about something the night before and couldn't study, it would be better to talk with the teacher about this. And if you don't have enough time to study for a test because of swim practice, you need to talk with your parents about how to balance swimming and school.

    A kid who thinks cheating is the only way to pass a test needs to talk with the teacher and his or her parents so they can find some solutions together. Talking about these problems and working them out will feel better than cheating.

    Up to 90% of school leavers in major Asian cities are suffering from myopia — short-sightedness, a study suggests. Researchers say the “extraordinary rise” in the problem is being caused by students working very hard in school and missing out on outdoor light.

    Eye experts say that you are short-sighted if your vision is blurred(模糊的) beyond 2m. It is often caused by an elongation (拉伸) of the eyeball that happens when people are young. According to the research, the problem is being caused by a combination of factors — a commitment to education and lack of outdoor light.

    Professor Morgan who led this study argues that many children in South East Asia spend long hours studying at school and doing their homework. This in itself puts pressure on the eyes, but exposure to between two and three hours of daylight helps maintain healthy eyes.

    Cultural factors also seem to play a part. Across many parts of South East Asian children often have a lunchtime nap. According to Professor Morgan they are missing out on natural light to prevent short-sightedness.

    A big concern is the numbers of the students suffering from “high” myopia. One in five of these students could experience severe visual impairment(障碍) and even blindness. These people are at considerable risk-sometimes people are not told about it and are just given more powerful glasses-they need to be warned about the risk and given some self-testing measures so they can get to an ophthalmologist and get some help.

    For decades, researchers believed there was a strong genetic component to the condition. But this study strongly suggests an alternative view. “Any type of simple genetic explanation just doesn't fit with that speed of change; gene pools just don't change in two generations. Whether it's a purely environmental effect or an environmental effect playing a sensitive genome, it really doesn't matter, the thing that's changed is not the gene pool—it's the environment.”

    Breathing dirty air comes at a high price. Air pollution lowers the average life spans (寿命) by a year worldwide and in more polluted parts of Asia and Africa, dirty air shortens lives up to twice that much. Scientists shared their new findings in Environmental Science & Technology Letters. The study used data gathered in 2016 as part of a project known as the Global Burden of Disease and was the first major country-by-country look at the connection between the length of life and what's known as fine PM.

    Air pollution has been linked to many health problems. Most earlier studies had looked at how tiny air pollutants affected rates of illness or death. Joshua Apte is an environmental scientist at the University of Texas at Austin. By looking at life expectancy (预期寿命), his team had hoped to make the threat easier to understand. PM2.5 is what scientists call tiny particles (颗粒) of pollution in the air. Higher levels of PM2.5 can cause health problems and cut months, if not years, from the average length of life. This analysis shows how pollution affects life expectancy in different parts of the world.

    The World Health Organization (WHO) recommends limiting PM2.5 to 10 micrograms per cubic meter of air. Apte's group calculated how holding pollution to this low level would help people. In countries with very dirty air, meeting this standard would lengthen people's lives. However, in countries whose air already meets this standard, the study shows no gain in life expectancy. In other words, meeting the WHO standard won't reduce health costs resulting from dirty air because even below 10 micrograms per cubic meter, pollution still causes serious risks. Meanwhile, the scientists compared how other threats including smoking and cancer shorten the length of life across the globe.

A good story. That's what influences our choice to buy a book the most. Right? Some of the biggest-selling novels of all time just so happened to be attached to major publishers. Indeed, any reading lover will be familiar with the countless publishing houses that have brought brilliant works to the market. So in theory, perhaps a publisher does matter. 

Every time you read a book that you enjoy, you likely look at the publisher attached to it. That name is a signal that they will produce other content that fits with that same style. It makes a lot of sense to continue to purchase texts from a company that is telling the kinds of stories that you enjoy the most. Consumer habits are thus based on trust that a publisher will be consistent in the books they deliver and that investing time in them is more reliable than an untested source.

The strength of the author themselves can also play into that. After all, well-liked authors are often signed to a book deal with a select few publishers, strengthening the brand further. 

Of course, a publisher would be nothing without its logo, which is a major call-to-arms for all fans of the brand. The top publishers in the world instantly recognizable imagery, which catch the attention while summing up the name of a brand in an instant. That thus builds our association with a given name. The fun penguin shape of Penguin Random House is so iconic, for example, that it could not be confused with any other publishing business.

There might be a place for those indie (独立经营的) book companies, with occasional stories breaking through and forcing people to take notice. In truth that's far less common than you expect. Expert Cassandra Davis, however, provides a hopeful insight. "Indie bookshops are more likely to stock an indie publisher's books, especially if the author is local to the bookshop." She says. Therefore, supporting local bookshops is a vital way to keep the indie industry alive and change these trends.