More than one billion pounds of pumpkins are grown in the U.S. every year, and after they’ve been used for Halloween decorations, millions of them—large, mini, orange, white—will end up in a landfill (垃圾填埋场).

“Driving around after Halloween, you see people with pumpkins on top of their garbage bins. All of that will go to a landfill and become methane gas which warms the atmosphere in a shorter amount of time than carbon dioxide,” says Kay McKeen, the director of an environmental education organization based in State of Illinois. “And landfills—where we send as much as 40 percent of the food we produce—contribute to 14 percent of U.S. methane emissions every year.” That’s why, in 2014, McKeen began Pumpkin Smash.

For this collection event, local people can bring their used pumpkins to 69 different locations to send them off to trash bins, and of course smash them to pieces. Though the event is currently limited to several towns, but by their own calculations, the event has saved 538 tons of pumpkins from the landfill. “It puts nutrients (营养物) back in our soil, it saves water, and it doesn’t make methane gas,” says McKeen.

Baking and cooking offers an easier solution. Pureed (糊状的) pumpkin is a common ingredient in baked goods like breads and pies. Actually, pumpkins are full of vitamins and fiber, making it a great source of human nutrition. And according to the American Kennel Club, pumpkin mixed into dog food can even help settle a dog’s upset stomach. “They love it mixed with their dry dog food, and it’s very good for them,” says Anne Meier, president of the club.

According to The Straits Times, many wild animals have recently skipped onto empty streets in many cities.

In Spain, a wild boar climbed down the hills and wandered around Barcelona. Sika deer nosed their way around the deserted metro stations of Nara in Japan. A stag ran in the capital of the northern state of Uttarakhand in India.

“It is certainly great news for species,” Marcelo Giagnoni, the head of Chile’s agricultural and livestock service, told AFP. “This is the habitat they once had and that we’ve taken away from them.”

Hundreds of years ago, people lived in harmony with wildlife. They shared natural resources from sunlight to water and from forests to land. But as human beings evolved and formed their own civilizations, they jostled with animals for more space and resources. Gradually, human beings came to lose connection with nature. More skyscrapers have been built to meet the needs of the flock of people in the cities, which drove away many wild animals from their habitats.

However, the recent lockdown of cities during the pandemic gives a chance of “freeing a space for other animals” and reflecting on our relationship with nature, according to AFP. Stuck indoors, with their worlds reduced to a few square meters, urban people have suddenly become enthusiastic birdwatchers. British ornithologist(鸟类学者)David Lindo, who is known as the “urban birder”, has been posting and livestreaming birds he spots from the roof of the building in Spain where he has been quarantined(隔离).

“The sky is a great arena, anything can fly past and, at the very least, it will give you peace. My message is simple: keep looking up,” he told CTV News.

Just as AFP noted, right now “the most important phenomenon perhaps is our relationship with nature is changing—with people locked up in their homes realizing how much they miss nature”.

Though the lockdown may be temporary, it’s time for us to reflect upon our relationship with the environment. As AFP put it, “people should always have a need of nature”. By missing nature, humans may come to respect—and live in harmony with—nature once again.

What Can We See in a Logo?

We see hundreds of logos on signs, vehicles, websites, and even on the clothes we wear. All of these logos are designed to attract our attention. 【小题1】 However, recently research supports the idea that remembering what a logo looks like is a very difficult task.

Researchers gave 85 students a simple assignment to draw the Apple logo purely from memory. Surprisingly, only one student in the study could accurately draw the logo from memory. 【小题2】 Researchers have developed a theory that they think might help to explain this blind spot in our memories.

Logos are typically designed to be simple and easy to recognize with a quick glance. Yet the frequent exposure to these logos can actually make our brains overlook them. This process is known as “attentional saturation (注意力饱和).” 【小题3】

Even though the brain is accustomed to ignoring unnecessary details, it is also programmed for recognition. When we see images such as logos over and over again, we become familiar with them. This constant exposure leads to something scientists refer to as gist (梗概) memory. 【小题4】 This general sense of memory has its own benefits. In fact, familiarity with a popular logo can even make people feel more comfortable about purchasing or using certain products.

Logos are everywhere we look today. A fancy design or a thoughtful color combination may be a good start for a logo concept, but there are other factors to consider. 【小题5】 A clever design may be interesting, but most people will forget the details—especially if our brains have anything to say about it.