Researchers in China have found a new, genetically (基因上) pure species of the critically endangered Chinese giant salamander (中国大鲵) in the wild. The new species was found in a largely undisturbed part of the Jiulingshan National Nature Reserve in Jiangxi Province. The animals are the only known genetically pure, reproducing giant salamander population in its natural habitat in the country. “The discovery of the new species in a closed nature reserve provides hope that other genetically pure species may still exist in other such places,” said Robert Murphy, a professor at the University of Toronto and one of the co-authors of the study.

The Chinese giant salamander is believed to have remained almost unchanged for 170 million years. While Chinese giant salamanders used to be thought of as one species, recent studies have revealed that there are five to eight genetically distinct species in the country. However, the species arc under great threat of extinction due to habitat loss, water pollution and overexploitation (过度开发) of wild populations over the past decades.

Chinese giant salamanders have been protected in China since the 1980s. “After the discovery of multiple species of Chinese giant salamanders, China quickly put into place several actions, such as providing additional funding for critical research, establishing a series of nature reserves for the species, and promoting cooperation between scientists and biologists,” Murphy said.

The researchers are now trying to track down more giant salamanders. Murpby said the discovery opened up new possibilities, such as establishing breeding farms with genetically pure salamanders to help populate ecosystems. In their paper, the researchers also stressed the importance of undisturbed habitats for protecting wildlife. “Closed nature reserves a new pathway for discovering and conserving endangered species,” they said.

Every living cell(细胞) contains genes(基因). They are too small to be seen under a microscope, but they are vitally important. Each set of genes in the body contains all the instructions needed to make a human being. Some genes determine hair color. Some determine the shape of a nose. Some genes help determine your height and even your weight.

Genes are made of a chemical called DNA — the letters stand for deoxyribonucleic acid. In the early 1950’s two scientists, Francis Crick and James Watson, figured out how the parts of DNA fit together. Once scientists understood this structure, it became possible to take pieces of DNA apart and put them together in new ways. New kinds of genes could be made in this manner.

Scientists have studied the genes of many plants and animals. They have worked out which genes affect the color of a tomato and the thickness of its skin. Working out which genes determine which features is called genetic mapping, scientists have begun the Human Genome Project, an ambitious effort to map all the genes in the human body.

Some genes may be defective. For example, something might be wrong with the gene that makes blood clot(凝聚). An individual born with this defective gene could suffer serious hemorrhages(出血)or even bleed to death because his or her blood fails to clot. Scientists are trying to treat the defective genes, and have made great achievements. If scientists could know a child has any defective genes beforehand, they might even discover how to treat these genes before the child is born.

After 18 months of unsatisfying, fully remote work, Isabella finally landed an office job at the end of last year as a production coordinator at a New York advertising agency.

“I was so excited,” she recalls. She wore her smartest business-casual outfit and took the subway from Brooklyn to Manhattan for the very first work commute (通勤，上下班往返) of her young career. On the seventh floor, she opened the door and was greeted with… quiet.

No phones ringing, no office buzz.

“I wore heels, which was stupid because there was nobody around,” she says. “The floors are concrete, so all you could hear was me clacking around.”

When she went back the next day, she opted for jeans, a T-shirt, and a pair of banged-up Nikes.

Like Isabella, who asked that her last name not be used because she was not authorized to speak by her company, many of America’s youngest workers have started their careers not with a bang but with a barely audible sob. Employers have pushed them into near-empty offices or kept them at home to collaborate with older colleagues they’ve never met in person. Instead of workmates across the desk, they have Zoom. Instead of chance encounters in a hallway, they have pre-scheduled remote meetings with supervisors who may — or may not — have mastered the art of managing or mentoring online.

Of course, not all employees — including those 25 or under, known as Generation Z — have office jobs. According to a PwC global survey, 45% of respondents hold positions that require full-time attendance in workplaces, like hotels and restaurants.

The rest have entered the labor equivalent of “The Twilight Zone.” This is particularly significant for Gen Z, whose well-being matters immensely for the American economy.

Nearly as big as the record-setting millennials (千禧一代), they are the nation’s most diverse generation and will hold a projected one-third of jobs by 2030. Their weird introduction to the workplace could hurt their careers — or, in a surprising twist, could give them the insights to create better working lives that have balance as the bedrock.