China Daily, in partnership with relevant organizations, is launching the International Cartoon and Illustration Exhibition 2025 on a Community with a Shared Future for Mankind, hoping to promote the trustworthy use of technology for the benefit of humanity through creative cartoons and illustrations.

The theme of this year’s exhibition is “Technology and Life”. Potential topics include:

The awards are categorized into 4 types: Gold Prize (1 winner) with ¥30,000 prize money; Silver Prize (2 winners) with ¥20,000; Bronze Prize (3 winners) with ¥10,000; 10 Outstanding Prize winners with an award. Additionally, all the winners will receive a certificate and portfolio (作品集) book.

The road stretched endlessly ahead. I paused to take a few careful sips of water — only enough to moisten my tongue, since the bottle was already half-empty — and weigh my options. The shade from the trees did little to ease the burning sun as I struggled to make sense of the maps. The original plan was to stay overnight at a tourist park near Logue Brook Dam, where I could finally reach my wife, but right then, I didn’t have the faintest idea where I was. Wearily, I pushed myself upright, remounted my bike and started to double back in the hope of spotting clear trail markers, but this only made things worse: the trees seemed to press in around me as I desperately scanned for landmarks — and the cicadas (蝉) had erupted into a deafening chorus.

After cycling slowly along the sandy trail for about two hours, I was delighted to see seemingly recent cycle tracks. Encouraged, I moved on, keeping a sharp eye on the tracks. However, I soon realised that they were my own. I was covering the same ground.

Discouraged, I lay my bike aside, and sank down under a tree with a heavy sigh. I had no more water, and my tongue felt swollen. I felt sleepy as groups of flies settled on me in a vain attempt to find dampness.

A sudden warm breeze stirred me. I opened my eyes, caught the distant hum of an engine, and glanced weakly upward, yet the sound faded away. After a short while, I heard it once more, but this time it seemed nearer. I dragged my feet and marched toward the source of the sound. When I made it to the top of the hill, I gasped in utter disbelief. There in front of me lay Logue Brook Dam, with boats pulling water skiers and folks sunbathing out in the open. I went back to my bicycle, pushed it up the hill, and let it coast into the lovely cool waters of the dam, where I rolled around wearing my full cycling gear.

Soaring above a desert expanse in an aircraft, two scientists looked down with trained eyes at trees and bushes. After an hour’s flight, one of the scientists jotted in his book, “Look here for probable metal”. Meanwhile, aboard another plane cruising over a mountainous terrain, scientists sent a message to other counterparts on the ground, “Gold possible.” Walking across hilly ground, four scientists documented their findings,” This ground should be searched for metals. “From an airplane hovering over a hilly wasteland, a scientist sent back by radio one word,” Uranium.”

None of the scientists possessed X-ray eyes: they had no supernatural powers for looking down below the earth’s surface. They were merely employing one of the most cutting- edge methodologies for locating minerals in the ground-using trees and plants as indicative markers that certain minerals may lie beneath the ground on which the trees and plants take root and flourish. This approach to mineral exploration is predicated upon the principle that minerals deep in the earth may affect the kind of bushes and trees that grow on the surface.

At Watson Bar Creek, a brook six thousand feet high in the mountains of British Columbia, Canada, a mineral search group gathered bags of tree seeds. Boxes were filled with small branches from the trees. Roots were dug and put into boxes. Each bag and box was carefully marked. In a scientific laboratory the parts of the forest trees were burned to ashes and tested. Each small part was examined to learn whether there were minerals in it.

Analysis of the roots, branches, and seeds disclosed an absence of silver. But small amounts of gold were detected in the roots, with lower gold concentrations present in the branches and seeds. The seeds growing nearest to the tree trunk had more gold than those growing on the ends of the branches.

Had the trees not provided indications of gold in the ground, the scientists would not have allocated funds for digging into the depths. They did excavate and uncovered additional gold reserves below the surface. Further digging revealed substantial quantities of the precious metal.

Regardless of how famous they are, and despite the star treatment they receive, many celebrities make it a point to give back to charities. Some have even set up their own private foundations. Their widely publicised visits to troubled areas of the world help to raise awareness of issues such as famine and poverty. According to Jane Cooper of Unicef UK, celebrities have a unique ability to reach huge numbers of people, many of whom might not otherwise be engaged in charitable causes. She pointed out that famous faces had played a significant role in raising funds in recent years, and their energies had produced tangible results, such as enabling millions of children in poorer countries to attend school.

But in spite of these successes, there is evidence to suggest that celebrity endorsement (代言) may be overrated. In a survey of members of the public to find out if celebrity involvement would encourage people to donate, researchers found that the impact was not as great as previously thought. When shown a list of well-known organisations and famous people who represent them, over half of respondents were unable to match the celebrity with the cause. What’s more, three quarters claimed that they didn’t respond to celebrity endorsement in any way. The survey also showed that a few names did stand out as being associated with particular charities. But the presence of a celebrity in a campaign, was not a significant factor when it came to a decision to donate time or money. Instead, the majority of people contribute because of personal connections in their lives and families which make a charity important to them.

In another study aimed at young people, most participants cited a compelling (无法抗拒的) mission as their main motivation to give. The second most important drive was if a friend or peer recommended supporting a particular cause. Only two percent of respondents said they were motivated by celebrity endorsement. This seems to contradict the general assumption that teenagers are particularly influenced by famous people. One possible explanation is that there is a general fatigue (疲倦) with celebrity culture. There is also a suspicion that the stars are the ones who benefit most when they offer to do charity work. Some critiques have accused that celebrities might actually take attention away from issues by attracting more attention than the causes they represent.

So taking all these issues into account, is it time for charities to rethink their campaign strategies and look for alternative ways to reach new audiences? Whichever point of view you favour, there seems to be opportunities for more research into how charity campaigns might develop relationships with celebrities to maximise their potential. This in turn will open up more engagement, and better targeted campaigns — which can only benefit those who really matter — the people and animals that are in need of assistance.

When your Home Becomes a Tourist Attraction

Have you ever looked at a beautiful little new house in London and thought “It must be so amazing to live there”? 【小题1】 But for the people who actually do live in those homes, social media photography has changed what it means to live in a pictures que place.

Alice Johnston is a longtime resident of Notting Hill, the London neighborhood famous for the beautifully-painted row houses and for being the setting of the movie of the same name. Johnston, a journalist, has complicated feelings about her Instagram- beloved neighborhood. She lives on Portobello Road, one of the capital’s most famous streets. 【小题2】 Once, she and a friend were walking his bulldog when a tourist asked if they could “borrow” the pup for a quick photo. The friend and the dog agreed, so the Instagrammer posed with the dog in front of a bright blue door and then handed over five pounds as a thank you. In that story, everybody had a good time. 【小题3】 “I was once woken up at 6 a.m. on Easter Sunday by a French teenager taking pictures outside,” Johnston says.

【小题4】 Johnston, for example, tries to be sympathetic to travelers coming to her hometown, recalling how she loved taking pictures of historic neighborhoods in Paris, Rome and the like. In fact, she recently found photos of herself as a teenager hanging out at the Notting Hill Carnival years before she moved to the capital herself. 【小题5】 “I feel lucky that it’s cool enough that people want to come where I live.”

Mr. Dalton taught us plane geometry (平面几何) 37 years ago. I was a quiet kid, neither getting in much trouble nor getting ________. Somehow, plane geometry really ________ for me in his class.

Toward the end of the year, Mr. Dalton wanted to ________ our knowledge and gave us a 25-question true/false nationally standardized test. The test presented each problem with a conclusion shown. We were required to write out the ________ using our theorems (定理).

I completed 24 problems quickly, but number seventeen was a lion ________ I spent thirty minutes on that proof and ________ I pulled it off with all my efforts. With ________ I marked the question true and handed in the test.

The next day I got my score, a 96, and number seventeen was ________ wrong When Mr. Dalton asked if there were any questions, for the first time, my hand ________.

Instead of ________ this was a nationally standardized test and that there couldn’t be any ________. Mr. Dalton did the most powerful thing I’ve ever seen a teacher do: he held out the chalk to me with an encouraging smile. Murmurs spread through the classroom — some classmates exchanged ________ glances, while others leaned forward, curiosity sparking in their eyes. I was hesitant for a moment, then went to the board and demonstrated my proof, using the whole board and three different colors of chalk. In the end, everyone clapped. Mr. Dalton gave ________ for my answer, and I ended up with a full mark.

When I returned 37 years later to visit him again, Alzheimer’s (阿尔茨海默氏症) had ________ his mind, but he still wore a happy grin.

I have been grateful to Mr. Dalton, for I could ________ have remained silent rather than challenging his authority or speaking up when I think I’m right.