In Japan, the latest time-saving invention is a dog-washing machine. Dog owners can buy one for their dogs. They can save time by putting their dogs in the machine and then 33 minutes later, a clean, fresh-smelling dog comes out. The machine becomes more and more popular. The sales of the dog-washer are increasing. The machines save a lot of money for pet owners. However, it’s bad news for pet hospitals because they are losing many customers.

The washing machine has many advantages. First, the whole cleaning process includes a shampoo (洗发), rinse (冲洗) and blow-dry. Second, tests showed that dogs enjoyed the wash and were very happy when the blow-dryer started working. Third, the most important is that the makers of the machine say it’s very safe and does not harm dogs in any way.

One dog-owner, Michiko Kobayashi, loves her new machine. She said her dog was happy, too. Michiko explained to the reporter, “Before I bought my washer, I only took my dog to the pet hospital a few times a year. Now, I wash her every week and she looks great. I also save a lot of money.”

It is welcomed by most people who raise dogs. And it takes over the market quickly. What a beautiful invention!

Yang Jun’ao, a 16-year-old student from No. 1 Middle School in Nanxian County, Hunan province, invented a “lotus root harvesting robot (采藕机器人)”.

“I got the idea when I saw my grandmother, in her 70s, working hard to harvest lotus roots under the hot sun,” Yang said. Sometimes, his grandmother would badly hurt her fingers using her harvesting tools.

To make things easier for his grandmother, Yang thought of creating a machine that could harvest lotus roots. With guidance from his teacher Hong Wei, Yang spent nearly a year building a model of the machine.

The robot moves on its own through the muddy field. It uses image recognition (识别) to find mature (成熟的) roots by looking at the color of the lotus leaves. The robot’s arm then cuts the mature lotus roots without damaging them.

During the invention process, Yang faced challenges like collecting parts for the model, putting them together and using a hot glue gun for bonding. “The first time I used a hot glue gun, my hands were shaking,” Yang laughed. At first, he planned to use rotating blades (旋转叶片) for harvesting lotus roots, but it was hard to find them, so he used more common blades instead .

When Yang showed the machine to his grandmother, she was happy and gave helpful suggestions for improvement. She suggested using the audio player to show the machine’s location in thick lotus leaves. “My grandmother’s suggestion reminded me that any technological invention must be practical to have true value,” said Yang.

Although Yang still needs to make improvements, like finding cheaper ways to make the machines, his teacher Hong spoke highly of Yang’s creative thinking and working on helping his hometown.

Serious internal wounds (内部的伤口)are hard to repair. They often require surgical operations (外科手术). But a new kind of glue might make these wounds easier to repair.

The glue is called MeTro. It can be used in small surgical operations. It was developed by a group of scientists from Australia and America, Daily reported.

Once used for a wound, MeTro can cure (治愈)it in one minute with the help of UV light. MeTro is made from special proteins (蛋白质).It is very elastic (有弹性的). This makes it possible to use it to cure wounded body parts. These body parts often change shape, so their wounds are more likely to reopen.

There is still a long way to go before the glue can be safely used on humans. But its future is bright. It could be used to cure serious internal wounds in emergency (紧急的)situations, such as after a car accident, Anthony Weiss from the University of Sydney told Science Daily.