Most people automatically take a high-pitched (声调高的), sing-song tone (语气) when speaking to animals and human babies. Although previous research has suggested that such” baby talk” is more likely to grab dogs’ attention, less was known about how cats react to being spoken to in this way.

To investigate, Charlotte de Mouzon and her team members observed how16 cats responded to hearing pre-recorded sentences spoken by their owner or a stranger, by recording changes in their behaviour, such as moving their ears or tails, suddenly stopping what they were doing, or their pupils getting bigger any of which could indicate that a sound had caught their attention.

They found that the cats were largely unresponsive to hearing a stranger’s voice calling their name, but when their owner did it, 10 of the 16 cats displayed a series of behaviours suggesting increased attentiveness. Cats also showed more signs of interest when they heard their owner speaking sentences in a tone usually used to address their cat - but not when a stranger used this tone, or when their owner spoke the same sentence as if addressing a fellow adult human

“For a long time it has been thought that cats are very independent animals, only interested in humans for food and shelter (庇护).” de Mouzon said. “But our research supports the idea that they are attached. It brings further evidence to encourage humans to consider cats as sensitive and communicative individuals,” she added. “The fact that, in return, cats show a greater reaction when their humans specifically address them brings a new dimension to previous considerations of this reciprocal (相互的) relationship.”

Given these findings, de Mouzon said cat owners shouldn’t feel embarrassed (不好意思的) about the way they speak to their pets. “I also talk to my two cats as if they were children - and they do respond, she said.” People may be shy about admitting this, but I think it can help to strengthen the bond between cats and their owners. They get that we are giving them attention.”

People have used pigeons to carry messages to one another for hundreds of years. In fact, pigeons were a common way to send messages right up through Would War II.

In 1815, English troops were fighting Napoleon’s forces in France, and the English were believed to be losing. A financial panic swept over London. Government bonds（债券）were offered at low prices. Few people noticed that Nathan Rothschild, an English banker, was snapping up these bonds when everyone else was trying to sell them. A few days later, London learned the truth: the Duke of Wellington had defeated Napoleon at the battle of Waterloo. The value of the bonds soared（暴涨）, and Rothschild became wealthy…all because his pigeons had brought him news of the victory before anyone else knew of it.

Carrier pigeons were used by countries in both World War I and World War II. Not only were the birds often the fastest, most reliable way to send messages, they could also be used to reach soldiers far behind enemy lines, where radios and field telephone lines were useless. Since they could easily be released from airplanes or ships, every branch of the armed services used the birds.

Carrying messages could be a dangerous job. Some pigeons performed with such bravery that they became famous and were even awarded medals. The most famous pigeon of all may have been Cher Ami. Stationed in France during World War I, he carried twelve important messages for American forces. On his last mission, though wounded, he carried a message that saved the lives of 194 American soldiers. For his amazing service, he was awarded the French “Croix de Guerre.”

Today, modern communication methods can carry information from one place to another hundreds of times faster than a pigeon could do it. However, few people would argue with the fact that carrier pigeons — especially those that served in the military — have earned their place in history.

For decades, American National Park visitors have been told that they hold the health and safety of the areas they visit in their hands. But as it turns out, stopping wildfires is simply not that easy, researchers say. And while some forest experts support plans that could greatly reduce the risk of widespread burns, they will cost billions of dollars and take decades. And even so risks will still exist.

The rapid increase in the frequency and intension(强度)of wildfires in recent years follows centuries of growing human influence on forests. We tend to put out wildfires as quickly as possible. But that instinct(本能)has allowed brush and trees that would normally die off in the occasional fire to continue growing in some areas. So when fires do strike, they can’t be controlled because these plants allow them to burn much more seriously.

Climate change has also created more favorable conditions for wildfires. Fires spread more quickly in warm temperatures caused by global warming. Conditions like climate change-related drought(干旱)also increase the likelihood of wildfires. A lack of access to water kills trees and plants and dry conditions transform the brush into a material that burns easily.

“Due to climate change and other factors, fire seasons tend to be longer and drier,” says Dong Rideout, professor of forest and rangeland stewardship at Colorado State University. “It turns out that fuel treatment programs can address both.”

Newer strategies for controlling wildfires include a number of different methods for reducing forest and plant life. government and forest protection officials have increasingly invested in programs to remove the extraneous(外来的)brush that helps fires spread quickly. Prescribed burns are one of the most effective---and controversial(引起争议的)----methods of reducing fire risk. In a prescribed burn, fire officials set fire to an area easily attacked by fire. Setting controlled fires allows forest workers to remove plant material under the conditions that they know will keep the fire from spreading too rapidly. Prescribed burns also help remove extraneous species that might destroy the native habitat, and in turn, crate more dead brush that could lead to bigger fires.

The method has grown in popularity in recent years, but still faces challenges, particularly in areas where burns might threaten local air quality.

Efforts to use these preventive methods have been increased in recent yeas, but experts say funding needs to be increased rapidly before wildfires spread across the globe. Governments have devoted billions of dollars to addressing wildfires, but the money has largely gone to putting out existing fires, as the number and intensity of wildfires increases.