What do you usually do in your spare time? Chatting online is now a national pastime in China, especially among the post-90s and post-00s generation. To some people, however, online chats can seem like a kind of polite conversation. Yet hidden rules and standards do exist, as long as you take the time to look for them.

    Get to the Point

    When sending a friend request, include your real name and any other identifying information. Remember, everybody's time is precious. If there's something you want, cut right to the chase. Never send an "Are you there?" without any follow-up messages. The quicker that you get to the point, the more likely the other person is to reply.

    Send the Right Things

    Please send texts, not voice messages. It might be easier for you to speak than type, but what about the person on the other end? They may be unable to listen to a 59-second message right now. Also, never send personal information by voice message—it is hard to note down. Emojis, GIFs and memes can save the day when you find yourself in an embarrassing conversation, or words fail you.

    Try to Understand

    You can always judge a person's mood by their text messages. If the person you're talking to says "Good night" or "I'm going to take a shower." that's probably not what they're actually going to do, it is just an excuse to stop talking to you. If someone hesitates for longer than three seconds before saying "Yes", they probably really mean "No". If you receive these emojis from friends who are older, read them literally (照字面地) (as a smile, a wave or a laugh). For the post-90s and post-00s generation, however, they could be speechlessness.

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Future astronauts could travel with emotional support robots

    To help astronauts of the future survive (幸免于) the mental (精神的) challenges that come with staying in space for quite a long time, space travelers‟ tasks could soon be accompanied(陪伴) by AI-powered, empathetic (有同理心的, 同感的) robotic helpers.

    Not only does space travel present astronauts with lots of physical stresses, spending months or years in such a physically demanding (要求高的) place with limited space and the same people can also raise many mental tests as well. According to MIT Technology Review, scientists are working to alleviate astronauts from some of the latter challenges by creating "an AI assistant that's able to feel human emotion and respond (做出反应) with empathy."

    While such a technology would prove itself useful by being able to predict the needs of the

crew members in space and "intervene (干预) if their mental health is in danger," it has the potential to be life-saving when humans choose to explore beyond Earth's gravitational field (引力场) and towards deep space.

    Though astronauts currently on the International Space Station have an intelligent robot to interact with called CIMON, it is short of proper emotional intelligence according to NASA CTO Tom Soderstrom. As a result, a team at the organization's Jet Propulsion Laboratory is working on a more complex (复杂的) emotional support companion that can control a spacecraft's functioning in addition to tracking the crew members‟ behaviours.

    Right now in the lab, an AI-equipped robot called Henry the Helper can be found walking around the grounds assisting visitors who appear confused or lost based on their facial expression. Two more emotionally intelligent robots are expected to be introduced later this year, one of which is said to be able to take part in conversations more complex than giving navigation(导航) assistance.

    The team's final goal is to make a companion named Fiona the Future a reality, an emotionally intelligent cross-platform system. Fiona, if all goes according to the JPL's plans, will help keep astronauts of the future stay mentally fit as they start their journeys to deep space.

Chinese tourists flock(涌入) to Morocco(摩洛哥) during Spring Festival

In the Chinese restaurant of Chefchaouen, one of the, top tourist attractions(旅游景点) in Morocco, an area of less than 100 square meters was full of more than a hundred Chinese tourists, with a lot more waiting outside, during the Chinese Spring Festival.

"Boss, can I have my Kung-Pao Chicken now?" "Boss, is my beef noodles ready?" Some visitors were not patient cough to wait long for their ordered foods. Restaurant owner said that during the Spring Festival, beer business was much better than usual.

Another Chinese restaurant owner in Fes, Morocco's central city, had the same experience. The waiters said during the Spring Festival, a large number of Chinese tourists waited in lines for meals every day.

In the southem Moroccan town of Marrakech, tourist buses full of Chinese tourists can be found everywhere during the Spring Festival.

In Majorelle Garden, a famous tourist attraction, two girls from Ningbo, a city in East China's Zhejiang province, said they chose Morocco as their Spring Festival travel place to taste the country's special food.

Morocco's Minister of Tourism Mohamed Sajid said it hopes to attract (吸引) 500,000 Chinese tourists each year by 2020.

Sajid also said Morocco is working to improve hotels, transports and tourist reception. He said direct flights(直达航班) between Morocco and China are being discussed, which is one of the key factors to attract Chinese tourists.

The erhu is a traditional Chinese musical instrument. It is the most popular of the huqin family. In the Song Dynasty, musicians began to use this type of huqin to perform different kinds of music, and it became quite a popular instrument. With the rise of some forms of folk art, the art of the erhu developed quickly during the Ming and Qing Dynasties. It became an important accompanying (伴奏) instrument in different folk music. Now it is used in both traditional and modern music. It has even become a solo (独奏的) instrument. One of the most famous musical pieces played on the erhu is Erquan Yingyue by Abing.

The erhu used to be mainly played by common people, As the playing skills were passed down by oral (口传) tradition, there are few written records about the erhu that can be found. To study the history and the development of the erhu, historians usually turn to ancient paintings, sculptures and murals (雕塑和璧画). The earliest pictures of this instrument were found in Yulin Caves and Eastern Thousand Buddha Caves in Gansu Province.

Because of so many people's effort, the erhu becomes more and more popular around the world. In fact, we can hear the familiar sound of the erhu in many Hollywood productions, such as Kungfu Panda in 2012 and most recently, the Oscar nominated(提名)film Up in the Air(《在云端》). When people watch these movies, they also enjoy the special music of the erhu. The erhu is also called "Chinese violin" by many westerners, but in many ways, they are quite different.

After a relaxing weekend, children have to go back to school on Mondays. For parents, they should do something helpful (有帮助的) to let their children get to school on time.

Let children take a good shower. It's good for children to take a shower before they go to bed. It can not only help them sleep well but also save time next morning.

Ask children to go to bed early. School starts at 8：00 a.m. So please let your children go to bed before 9：30 p.m. Your children should (应该) sleep for about nine hours every day. This is quite important because they have to get up early next day.

Make a good breakfast for children. Breakfast can help children study better (更好的) in the day. It can help students listen to teachers carefully (细致地) and think well in class. Also, it's good for their health.

Getting to school on time is very important for your children. So please help them. If you can do the things above (以上), they will study and live happily.

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