An absolute description of the threat hanging over the world's mammals,reptiles,amphibians and other life forms has been published by the well-known scientific journal,Nature.A special analysis carried out by the journal indicates that an astonishing 41% of all amphibians on the planet now face extinction while 26% of mammal species and 13% of birds are similarly threatened.

    Many species are already critically endangered and close to extinction,including the Sumatran elephant,Amur leopard and mountain gorilla.But also in danger of vanishing（消失）for the wild,it now appears,are animals that are currently rated as merely being endangered.

    In each case,the finger of blame points directly at human activities.The continuing spread of agriculture is destroying millions of hectares of wild habitats every year,leaving animals without homes,while the introduction of newly-come species,often helped by humans,is also damaging native populations.At the same time,pollution and overfishing are destroying ocean ecosystems.

    "Habitat destruction,pollution or overfishing either kill off wild creatures and plants or leaves them badly weakened," said Derek Tittensor,an ocean ecologist at the World Conservation Monitoring Centre in Cambridge. "The trouble is that in coming decades,the additional threat of worsening climate change will become more and more common and could then kill off these survivors."

    The problem,according to Nature,is worsened because of the huge gaps in scientists knowledge about the planet's biodiversity.Evaluations of the total number of species of animals and plants alive vary from 2 million to 50 million.In addition,evaluations of current rates of species' disappearances vary from 500 to 36,000 a year. "That is the real problem we face," added Tittensor. "The scale of uncertainty is huge."

    In the end,however,the data indicate that the world is heading cruelly towards a mass extinction-which is defined as one involving a loss of 75% of species or more.This could arrive in less than a hundred years or could take a thousand,depending on extinction rates.

    Teachers' Day is, interestingly, not celebrated on the same day all over the world. In some countries it is marked by a holiday, in others it is a working day.

    International Teachers' Day is celebrated on October 5. Being held ever since 1994, it is in honor of teachers' organizations worldwide. Its aim is to encourage supports for teachers and to meet the needs of students.

    China    In 1939, Teachers' Day was set for August 27, Confucius' birthday. In1951, the celebration was stopped. However, it was founded again in 1985, and the day was changed to September 10.

    India     Teachers' Day is celebrated on September 5 in honour of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the second president of India, whose birthday falls on that day.

    Russia    In Russia, Teachers' Day was celebrated on the first Sunday of October between 1965 and 1994. Since 1994, the day is observed on the October 5, just the same day as World Teachers Day.

    The US    In the US, Teachers' Day is non-official holiday. It is celebrated on the Tuesday of the first full week of May. A number of activities are organized in schools to honor teachers. The celebrations can continue for the whole week of May.

    Thailand     In Thailand, National Teachers' Day is celebrated every year on January 16. The first Teachers' Day was held in 1957. The day is a holiday in schools.

    One of America's best-known artist colonies, the MacDowell Colony, will turn 110 next year. It is a place where artists of all types can sweep away distractions (令人分心的事物) and just create.

    MacDowell's operations are funded by foundations, corporations and individuals. Writers, composers, photographers, filmmakers and sculptors — both famous and unknown —compete for the 32 free studios at the place. Once accepted, an artist can stay for as little as a couple of weeks, or as long as a couple of months.

    When they arrive, artists find a kind of isolation (隔绝) hard to find in our world. There's no phone. No fax. No friends. No family. It's just a cabin in the snowy woods.

    Writer Emily Raboteau lives in New York City. She came to MacDowell to work on a novel. She received a desk, chairs, pencil and paper — and ice grippers. The walk from one isolated, one-room studio to another is icy, so colony residents (居住的人) fasten the ice grippers to the bottom of their shoes.

    Another colony resident, Belfast composer Elaine Agnew, plays a piece called “To a Wild Rose,” written by Edward MacDowell. She says it's so famous that every pianist in the world has played the tune. A hundred years ago, Macdowell owned the land where the colony now sits. He liked its isolation and his ability to get work done there. After his death, his wife, Marion, encouraged other artists to come.

    And for the last century, artists have accepted the invitation, coming to step outside of their daily lives for a short time. Privacy is respected, but cooperation and discussion is common.

    Screenwriter Kit Carson — who wrote Texas Chainsaw Massacre 2 and the film adaptation of Sam Shepherd's play Paris, Texas — has visited MacDowell twice. He says that the interdisciplinary (学科间的) discussion there is valuable.

    “You sit around at dinner, talking, and then somebody runs off and brings you back some stuff and shows it to you,” he says. “That, I didn't realize, was part of the magic here, because people are really open to showing their opinions here.”

    Lawns（草坪）are some of the most common things in the world until you really start thinking about them. That's when you realize that they make no sense. Why do people keep these uninteresting, pointless little plants outside their homes? They're not beautiful like flowers, they don't provide food and you have to take care of them constantly.

    Israeli bestselling author Yuval Noah Harari thought these deeds were weird too. He looked into their history and ended up with an interesting story.

    No one considered putting patches of grass outside their homes in ancient times. That changed in the Middle Ages, when French and English kings and nobles started putting patches of grass at their castle entrances.

    “Well-kept lawns demand land and a lot of work,” wrote Harari in his book. “In exchange, they produce nothing of value.” Peasants could never afford to waste their time or land on lawns, so these lawns were a perfect status symbol（身份的象征）for nobility（高贵）.

    When the Industrial Revolution began in the 18th and 19th centuries, the middle classes started being able to afford their own suburban（郊区的）houses. And guess what became the suburban status symbol? A perfectly kept lawn.

    The popularity of lawns continued to grow, taking over public event spaces and sports. In the past, people played sports on all kinds of surfaces—dirt, ice, sand. But in the last couple centuries, they made the switch to green grass.

    “Grass is nowadays the most widespread crop in the USA after corn and wheat,” Harari continued. Lawns spread beyond Europe and the U.S, and they're now status symbols around the world.

    Suburban people may not realize it, but they care for lawns just because centuries ago, French and English kings wanted to show off by intentionally planting something useless. It's strange that people should continue to spend so much time and money on what's really a leftover（遗留物）from the Middle Ages. When you plan your house, you can shake off（摆脱）the cultural leftover and imagine for yourself a rock garden or some other new creation.

    The year was 1932. Amelia Earhart was flying alone from North America to England in a small single-engined aeroplane. At midnight, several hours after she had left Newfoundland, she ran into bad weather. To make things worse, her altimeter (高度表) failed and she didn't know how high she was flying. At night, and in a storm, a pilot is in great difficulty without an altimeter. At times, her plane nearly plunged (冲) into the sea.

    Just before dawn, there was further trouble. Amelia noticed flames coming from the engine. Would she be able to reach land? There was nothing to do except to keep going and to hope.

    In the end, Amelia Earhart did reach Ireland, and for the courage she had shown, she was warmly welcomed in England and Europe. When she returned to the United States, she was honored by President Hoover at a special dinner in the White House. From that time on, Amelia Earhart was famous.

    What was so important about her flight? Amelia Earhart was the first woman to fly the Atlantic Ocean alone, and she had set a record of fourteen hours and fifty—six minutes.

    In the years that followed, Amelia Earhart made several flights across the United States, and on each occasion (时刻) she set a new record for flying time. Amelia Earhart made these flights to show that women had a place in aviation (航空) and that air travel was useful.

    The Z Hotel is in the heart of London's West End and has comfortable accommodation in a contemporary design.

    All rooms include handcrafted beds, 48-inch Samsung HD TVs with free Sky Sports and Movie channels, and free Wi-Fi. Each room also has under-bed storage for an overnight bag, and wall-mounted hanging space for clothing. The Z Hotel also offers wheelchair accessible rooms.

    Continental breakfast is served in The Z Cafe every morning, including smoked salmon, fresh bread, fresh fruit salad and bacon rolls. A selection of salads, sandwiches and hot dishes are on offer throughout the day.

    The hotel is a 5-minute walk from Prince of Wales Theatre and Chinatown London, Leicester Square, Piccadilly Circus and Trafalgar Square. Heathrow Airport can be reached directly from Piccadilly Circus Underground Station.

    This is our guests，favorite part of London, according to independent reviews. This area is also great for shopping, with popular brands nearby: Apple, H&M, Zara, Burberry and Chanel.

    The Z Hotel is rated for the best value in London! Guests are getting more for their money when compared to other hotels in this city. Come and stay with us!

    Most popular facilities:

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◆ 24-hour front desk     ◆ Daily maid service     ◆ Parking     ◆ Lift

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