Here is a page from a magazine called Future. Read the following information about things that may happen in twenty years.

    Cars will run on solar power (太阳能) and will be much cleaner and safer. For example, if you are too close to another car or if you are driving dangerously, your car will slow down or stop by itself.

    New cities will have to be built in the sea. Some cities on water will have two levels(层). People will live on the upper level, the lower level will be used for traffic, shops and factories.

    Biotechnology(生物技术) will make food better and healthier. Plants without insects or illnesses(病虫害) will be developed. The taste of fruit and vegetables will be better and food will be kept longer.

    Many new ways to cure(治愈) illnesses will be found. People will use products of genetic engineering (基因产品) to cure more illnesses. However, some new illnesses will appear.

    Imagine a perfect day: the weather is good and everything seems fine. When, suddenly, your mobile phone loses its signal, the television has no programs, and you can't get online with your computer.

    What has happened? These are just the types of problems a solar storm（太阳风暴）might cause. You may not think of storms as putting our society in danger. But today, a solar storm is as serious as other bad events, such as earthquakes.

    A solar storm is caused by solar flares（太阳耀斑）: large explosions（爆炸）near the sun that can give off lots of energy. The strong energy can stop the satellite systems（卫星系统）that control our computers, telecom networks and so on. These storms can even cause the power to go out for weeks or months.

    In the past few months, scientists have recorded some of the strongest sun flares in years. The most recent one happened around Valentine's Day, 2011. It caused radio and satellite signals to go down in some northern cities in China.

    “Solar flare activity is going to be much worse than what we've seen in the past. We're not talking about a few cities losing power, it could be half of the country, maybe more.” SolarStormWarning.com, a US website about space weather, warned.

    Scientists say that little can be done to predict such a storm. Governments around the world are trying to work together before the next storm, although they are not sure when that may happen.

    You don't need to get in a time-travelling machine to see how technology will change our lives, such as the way we shop. Several new technologies that are to change your buying habits already appear. Let's see what's in store for your future shopping.

    Try it on, virtually(虚拟地). Want to shop online for a new pair of glasses? You don't need to guess which pair looks best on you—use the eBay Fashion iPhone app to try a pair of glasses you're checking out on a picture of your face. But what about buying something bigger? Thanks to Microsoft Kinect's action tracking(跟踪)camera, you can cover clothes on your screen body. You can even choose the background of your virtual fitting room to improve your shopping experience.

    Get a perfect, custom fit. Everyone's body is shaped differently. To get a perfect fit, you sometimes have to get your clothes changed. But by using 3D scanning technology, all the clothes you buy will fit your body perfectly. Some companies scan(扫描)your body using High-tech to get the real sizes, so they can make special clothes just for you.

    High-tech shopping carts(推车)and checkout counters(收银台). High-tech shopping carts could be common in malls and supermarkets in the future. Microsoft Kinect-enabled carts are under test. The cart can follow you along the aisles(通道), controlled only by your movement and your voice.

    In the United States, several supermarkets use a certain set called "Scan It" that gives buyers the freedom to scan products on their own while they shop. If we don't want to wait in line before the checkout counters, we can use Toshiba's new object Recognition Scanner. The machine identifies(辨认)a product as soon as it's placed in front of a camera just by its shape and color, even if it has no bar code.

    Many scientists think that the Earth is getting warmer and warmer. If the change continues, the natural world and human society will face danger. Scientists believe human activity is responsible for the climate change. We produce too many greenhouse gases. They keep heat in the air and make the Earth warm.

    Many of the world's governments agree. And they want to solve the problem. So from 7 to 18 December, 2009，they held a conference in Copenhagen, Denmark to talk about global warming and climate change.

    Representatives(代表) from 192 countries and regions went to the meeting. Although they have not reached an agreement, the Copenhagen Accord(《哥本哈根协议》) was an important beginning to save the Earth. It was made by a small group of countries including China，the USA，India, Brazil and South Africa. Some other countries at the conference also showed support.

    What are the key points of the Copenhagen Accord? The accord limits global temperature increases to 2C by 2050. Scientists think it could help the world to avoid serious climate change.

    The accord also says that developed countries must promise to cut greenhouse gas emissions(排放) to the UN by 31 January, 2010. The accord asks developed countries to give money to help developing countries.

    Many countries and organizations are disappointed that the conference didn't reach a legal document(法律文书). And they think the accord is not clear enough about its goals.

African leaders are worried that the goal of a 2℃ global temperature increase isn't good enough, because it will mean a much higher increase in temperature across Africa. This could cause big problems like food and water shortages across the continent.

    Still, UN Secretary General believes the conference was an "improvement".

    "Finally we reached a deal," Ban said," the accord may not be everything everyone had hoped for, but this is an important beginning."