After years of research and testing, the hybrid car was developed and put on the market. It' s an interesting and exciting new improvement in today' s world as we look for better ways to protect the quality of the air we breathe and conserve our natural resources.

    The quality of our air is affected by many different things. But one of the largest sources of air pollution is the burning of fossil fuels such as coal and gasoline which is used to power a car' s engine. The EPA has set national standards to help control the level of harmful pollutants sent off into the air, and the automobile industry has acted by producing a hybrid car that uses less gas and therefore causes less pollution.

    A hybrid car is a combination of a regular car that runs on gasoline and an electric car that is battery powered. Some people tend to think that since the hybrid car is partially electric, you have to plug it in to charge it. But that's not how it works. The 144-volt battery pack is actually recharged through the energy that is produced when the car's brakes are used. This is referred to as “regenerative braking”, because it generates electricity.

    Although the hybrid car still runs on gasoline most of the time, this helps it use less gas than a regular car. When the driver stops at a traffic light, the engine automatically shuts off to save fuel. Then, as soon as the driver puts the car in gear and touches the gas pedal, the engine starts back up.

    Have you ever ridden in a car with someone who ran out of gas? That probably wouldn't happen if you were riding in a hybrid car. It flashes a warning on its computer screen that says, “I am low on gas”. When it completely runs out, the warning reads, “YOU ARE NOW OUT OF GAS!” Then the electric power supply kicks in to let the driver travel a few more miles to a gas station.

    Sydney Cultural Festival – What's on today!

    European Art Show

    Location: Art Gallery of New South Wales. Today is the final day of the exhibition featuring 18th and 19th century paintings by some of the greatest European artists, such as Van Gough and Monet. Posters of these great works are available for purchase at the Visitors' Centre.

    Time: 8.30am –7pm

    Cost: $12 adults; $7 children and students

    Nature Walks

    Location: Sydney's Royal Botanic Garden. Come and celebrate our natural environment in one of the world's only nature parks inside a major city. Join our hourly guided tours, starting at the Eastern Gate, and enjoy breathtaking forests, stunning city escapes and the magnificent Sydney Harbour.

    Time: 9am – 4pm Cost: Free

    Sydney Symphony Orchestra Concert

    Location: Sydney Opera House. Australia's most famous orchestra is best known for its performances of classical French and German music. But in tonight's concert, the world-famous Chinese pianist Lang Lang is the special guest artist and will perform a series of classic Chinese compositions including Yellow River.

    Time: 8.30pm –11.30pm

    Cost: $175 adults; $90 students and children

    Moonlight Cinema

    Location: Centennial Park. Sit on the grass and enjoy the latest movies or classics from the past under the stars at Australia's best and largest outdoor cinema. Tonight features the wonderful Australian film Red Dog. Besides the movie, there will be a display of classic Australian film posters.

    Time: 8pm – 10.30pm

    Cost: $19 adults; $14 children and students

    Could the device, smartphone or PC, which you are using affect the moral decisions you make when using it? To test it, researchers presented multiple dilemmas to a sample set of 1,010 people. The participants were assigned a device at random.

    One case of the questions participants were asked is the classic “trolley(有轨电车) problem”: A runaway trolley is headed towards five people tied up on a-set of train tracks. You can do nothing, resulting in the deaths of five people, or push a man off a bridge, which will stop the trolley. The practical response is to kill one man to save five lives, which 33. 5 percent of smartphone users chose, compared to 22.3 percent of PC users.

    “What we round in our study is that when people used a smartphone to view classic moral problems, they were more likely to make more unemotional, reasonable decisions when presented with a highly emotional dilemma, “Dr Albert Barque-Duran, the lead author of the study, told City, University of London. “This could be due to the increased time pressure often present with smartphones and also the increased psychological distance which can occur when we use such devices compared to PCs.”

    As for why the researchers started this study, Dr Barque-Duran noted, “Due to the fact that our social lives, work and even shopping take place online, it is important to think about how the contexts where we typically face moral decisions and are asked to engage in moral behavior have changed, and the impact this could have on the hundreds of millions of people who use such devices daily. “It's clear that we need more research on how our devices affect our moral decision making because we're using screens at an ever increasing rate.

    The Metropolitan Museum of Art (Met) is one of the world's largest and finest art museums. Following the suggested route will help you explore the museum.

    The Temple of Dendur

    This 2000-year-old building stood near the Nile River, surrounded by a wall that no longer exists. But you can still peek through the gateway. Whose "house" is this? It's not for people. It's for gods. Can you identify them? They face out. A king faces in, bringing offerings.

    MetSpeaks

    Bringing together some of the most respected thinkers on a given subject, MetSpeaks features lectures, discussions, talks, films, and forums in which compelling voices explore timely issues that connect to the Met's exhibitions and permanent collection. Program times, audiences, and topics vary.

    Time to Sketch

    Settle down for a few minutes, pick something in this gallery, and have fun drawing it. Enjoy the chance to look carefully as you create your own sketch. You'll be surprised at how much more you notice, thanks to exploring art by sketching.

    MetAccess

    Make the Met yours! Choose from a variety of services and exciting programs that are tailored to meet the needs of visitors with disabilities. Program times, audiences, and topics vary.

    Ask for the Access Information brochure and Access Calendar at Information Desks, download the Access Calendar (PDF), or call 212-650-2010 or email access@metmuseum.org.

    Admission

    Fee includes admission to the Main Building and same-week admission to the Cloisters museum and gardens.

    Wood has many great characteristics that make it the perfect building material. It is cheap, durable, easily available, and most importantly, environmentally sustainable. The one thing it is not, is transparent! Now thanks to a team of scientists at Stockholm's KTH Royal Institute of Technology the material may even be able to add that feature to its already impressive list.

    Lead researcher Dr, Lars Berglund said he was inspired to create the transparent wood after learning how Japanese researchers had developed a see-through paper for use in flexible display screens for electronic devices. The team began by pulling out the wood's lignin(木质素). The lignin-free wood was then dipped into a polymer(聚合物)and baked at a temperature of 158°F for four hours. The result was a hybrid product that was not only stronger and lighter than the original wood but also, almost transparent. The researchers were able to adjust the level of transparency by varying the amount of the polymer injected and also by changing the thickness of the wood.

    While scientists have previously created a see-through wood for small-scale applications like computer chips, the transparent wood is the first one being considered for large scale applications. The researchers, who revealed their findings in Biomacromolecules on April 11, picture using the transparent wood in buildings to allow for more natural light, or to create windows that let in the desired amount of light without sacrificing privacy.

    Wood that allows light to pass through could lead to a brighter future for homes and buildings. Berglund also thinks the wood could play a significant role in the design of solar panels. The semitransparent material would be able to keep light longer and give it more time to interact with the conductor, thus resulting in better solar efficiency. Additionally, substituting the currently used glass with this new product would help solar energy manufacturers improve their carbon footprint and lower the cost. They are now experimenting with ways to scale up the manufacturing process so that the transparent material is cost-effective to make and easy to use.

    On March 2, at the meeting held ahead of the yearly session of the CPPCC National Committee(全国政协大会), interpreter(口译员)Yao Mengyao caught the attention of many with her "quick reaction and correct translation," Xinhua noted,

    Yao began her studies in English in primary school where she would listen to English tapes. She ofen spoke to her teacher about English-related topics that were not limited to the ones in her textbooks, "They were always very professional uncommon topics, "said Yao's senior school teacher Shen Yingzi,

    Like Yao, Zhang Lu is a regular interpreter for China's top leaders, including Premier Li Keqing and former Premier Wen Jiabao Her effortless but on-point translations of ancient poems mentioned by former Premier Wen won praise.

    So how do interpreters reach their top positions?

    The reason for their success is largely hard work. Other than when they go out on visits with Chinese leaders, the interpreters follow a very strict schedule. Zhang called this schedule"an unshakable plan". They listen to foreign media such as BBC, VOA or CNN through TV or radio for their training.

    It is reported that a month before the two sessions(两会), the interpreters get notice of the spokesperson they are going to interpret for. They then make full use of this month to prepare themselves. They try to predict the questions that might be asked and consider the sayings the spokesperson might use when they answer the questions.

    In truth, there is no secret to their success: It's all a matter of skill and hard work.