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 144volt 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.

    “One thing I enjoy about my job is that I can work on something that is actually active,” says Game McGimsey, an American volcanologist(火山学家). Part of his job includes keeping an eye on Alaska's many active volcanoes and giving people a heads-up when a volcano might erupt(喷发).

    Like most jobs in the science, volcanology requires a lot of education. McGimsey received an undergraduate degree in geology at the University of North Carolina, then landed an internship(实习期) with a geologist at the USGS(美国地质勘探局) whose work field was about volcanoes. After earning a graduate degree at the University of Colorado, McGimsey accepted a job with the USGS and has been with the Alaska Volcano Observatory for 25 years.

    Volcanoes can influence the world in ways we might not think about. For example, on Dec.15 1989, a 747 jetliner (a large airplane) flew through a thick ash cloud produced by Mount Redoubt, an Alaskan volcano that hadn't erupted in 25 years. The ash caused all four engines to die, and the plane's electronics went dead.

    “The plane was within several thousand feet of flying into the mountains below when the pilots got a couple of engines restarted and landed safely in Anchorage,” McGimsey says. It cost nearly $80 million to repair the damage to the plane.

    Such situations show just how dangerous volcanoes can be. However, volcanologists know the risks and are prepared to protect themselves.

    McGimsey admits, “There is certainly a higher danger level in volcanology than some other jobs. We understand how serious the danger is, and we don't like taking unnecessary chances. We avoid getting too close to an erupting volcano, because it is not worth injury or death simply to get a rock or a photograph.”

    This is a photo of a similar car I own. It's a photo of a Skoda Fabia, I drive one too. A young guy also got out of a similar car as I was getting close to mine. I laughed and was prepared to leave. The young guy continued to have a conversation with me.

    He asked me how I found the car. It turned out that it was his first day to drive the car and it was new and it was a gift from his parents and he'd just passed his driving test today! What a coincidence (巧合)!

    Well, this was a special moment for Nicholas. Who gets a new car the day they learn to drive and then drives into a garage and has a talk with a woman who's driving the same model of car? Yes, beautiful synchronicity (同步性) in full view.

    I wanted to make this moment special for Nicholas, and I wanted to gift him something. Thinking on my feet, I thought I'd buy him a lottery ticket (彩票) but it wasn't special enough.

    I got into my car and removed my Guardian Angel key ring which I had attached to my front mirror. It was there to keep me safe. My birthday is on Guardian Angel's Day too, so this is very special to me. I gave it to Nicholas and he was happy to receive it. Nicholas gave me a big hug.

    Nicholas was not an overconfident guy. He also told me his mum was only out of hospital and now he'd be able to help her get about.

I'll order myself another Guardian Angel key ring for my car for fear that my Guardian Angel will not be protecting me without the key ring. As for Nicholas, well, I wish he and his passengers a lifetime of safe driving.

    In the world today, all of the people need recreation(消遣). We cannot work all the time if we are going to keep healthy and enjoy life.

    Everyone has his own way of relaxing. Perhaps the most popular form is to take part in sports. There are team sports, such as basketball and football. There are also individual(个人的) sports, such as swimming and running. Skating and mountain climbing are the most popular recreation for people who like to be outdoor. Not everyone who enjoys sports likes to take part in them. Many people like watching them on TV or listening to them on the radio. So many people like some forms of recreation, such as watching TV, singing and dancing. It doesn't matter whether we like indoor recreation or take part in outdoor sports. It is important for everyone to relax from time to time and enjoy some forms of recreation.

    British scientists have discovered the willow trees planted at an angle could increase sugars for biofuel production.

    Willow is a fast-growing species. It is already used to produce fuels for the renewable heating and power market. In future it could also help to produce biofuel to power vehicles. It has been known that when willows growing in the wild are blown sideways, they tend to produce more sugars. But for a while it has not been known why this happens.

    Researchers at Imperial College London, led by Dr Nicholas Brereton and Dr Michael Ray of the Department of Life Sciences, have now solved the mystery. When the tree is blown sideways, its genes (基因) produce large numbers of sugar molecules (分子) to straighten the tree upwards.

    “This is an important breakthrough. Our study now shows that natural genetic changes are related to these differences. And this could well be the key to unlocking the future for green energy from willow,” said Dr Brereton.

    The research was carried out under lab conditions. The willows were grown at an angle of 45 degrees. They were compared to willows which grow naturally straight upwards. The team then looked for the same effect among the willows growing on the Isle of Orkney where strong winds cause the trees to bend at extreme angles. They discovered that the Orkney trees produce five times the amount of sugars found in willows grown in sheltered conditions.

    Willow is widely planted across the UK. The results show that biofuel crops such as willows could be grown in climatically changeable conditions where chances of growing food crops are limited.

    The study is published in Biotechnology for Biofuels.

    When a leafy plant is under attack, it doesn't sit quietly. Back in 1983, two scientists, Jack Schultz and Ian Baldwin, reported that young maple trees getting bitten by insects send out a particular smell that neighboring plants can get. These chemicals come from the injured parts of the plant and seem to be an alarm. What the plants pump through the air is a mixture of chemicals known as volatile organic compounds, VOCs for short.

    Scientists have found that all kinds of plants give out VOCs when being attacked. It's a plant's way of crying out. But is anyone listening? Apparently. Because we can watch the neighbors react.

    Some plants pump out smelly chemicals to keep insects away. But others do double duty. They pump out perfumes designed to attract different insects who are natural enemies to the attackers. Once they arrive, the tables are turned. The attacker who was lunching now becomes lunch.

    In study after study, it appears that these chemical conversations help the neighbors. The damage is usually more serious on the first plant, but the neighbors, relatively speaking, stay safer because they heard the alarm and knew what to do.

    Does this mean that plants talk to each other? Scientists don't know. Maybe the first plant just made a cry of pain or was sending a message to its own branches, and so, in effect, was talking to itself. Perhaps the neighbors just happened to "overhear" the cry. So information was exchanged, but it wasn't a true, intentional back and forth.

    Charles Darwin, over 150 years ago, imagined a world far busier, noisier and more intimate (亲密的) than the world we can see and hear. Our senses are weak. There's a whole lot going on.