2025.10.18 青少年新闻速递
First up, let’s fly high into a city known as the “World Capital of Kites.” We are traveling to Weifang, in East China’s Shandong province.
Imagine you are standing on a vast green lawn. You feel a gentle breeze on your face. You look up, and the sky is not just blue. You can see a golden dragon twisting through the air, a rainbow phoenix spreading its vibrant/colorful wings, and a long string of tiny swallow kites that flutter and fly in the wind. This is not a dream; it’s a regular sight in Weifang, a city with a kite-making history that has stretched over 2,400 years!
Local records have shown that people in this city have been making kites for more than two millennia. The craft became even more popular after Cai Lun invented papermaking, which allowed paper kites to appear among the people. In 2006, Weifang kite making was officially recognized as a national intangible cultural heritage in China, which means it’s a very special and protected tradition.
Making one of these fantastic flying figures is a detailed process. Yang Hongwei, a national-level inheritor of the craft, has explained that it requires 36 procedures, which are grouped into four major techniques: framework making, mounting, painting, and flying. She has honed her skills for over 40 years, creating everything from giant kites that are 300 meters long to micro kites with a diameter of just two centimeters. A 300-meter-long kite is incredible! That’s as long as three soccer fields placed end to end!
The materials are chosen with great care. Masters like Wang Yongxun select bamboo that is between two and three years old because it has the perfect strength and flexibility. They have also developed a special custom-blended fabric that is lightweight and colorfast, replacing the old rice paper or silk. Today, Weifang is a massive center for kite production. The city has over 600 kite companies that employ about 80,000 people. Their annual sales have exceeded 2 billion yuan, and their products are sold to more than 50 countries and regions. The city has recently hosted its 42nd International Kite Festival, attracting 257 teams from 51 countries. This wonderful spectacle/show proves that kites are an art that crosses cultures and languages. If you could design your own kite, what would it look like and what special features would it have?
From ancient crafts to future technology, our second story shows how young inventors are solving some of the world’s biggest problems.
Let’s start with a team from Tsinghua University. They have developed an amazing low-cost, no-flush household toilet system called Pureco. Imagine you are visiting a remote village in a cold, dry region where there are no sewer networks and water is scarce. The team saw that in these places, many households relied on unhygienic toilets. Globally, 3.5 billion people still lack access to safe sanitation. This is a serious problem that causes diseases that harm many children.
The Pureco system is a brilliant solution. It harnesses/uses solar or wind energy to power itself. It separates waste, removes odors, and composts the waste into useful fertilizer for farmers. It provides a safe and comfortable toilet without using any water or outside electricity. Over the past decade, the team has made inspection tours to 64 villages, and their invention has already benefited nearly 9,000 households. This project has won China’s national James Dyson Award, an international award that inspires the next generation of design engineers.
But the innovation doesn’t stop there. Another young inventor, Chen Peihong from China Pharmaceutical University, has created an AI-driven pharmaceutical 3D system. This incredible machine allows for the on-demand production of personalized medications. This can be a huge help for vulnerable/unprotected populations in remote areas who need specific medicines.
And for health, two students from Shanghai Jiao Tong University, Lu Hanwen and Song Xinyuan, have developed the ScolioDetect. It’s a wearable sensor system that can detect scoliosis, a condition where the spine curves. You see, detecting it early usually requires X-rays, which involve radiation. With ScolioDetect, a person just walks naturally for three minutes while wearing the device, and it translates their walking patterns into spinal curve data. It’s radiation-free and much faster than an X-ray, making it perfect for screenings in schools.
A judge for the Dyson Award, Hu Hongfei, has said that these students have shown great engineering talent and social responsibility. They have looked at real-world challenges and used technology to create solutions. These students used science to solve real-world problems. If you had the power to invent something, what problem in your own community would you try to solve first?
中文版本 新闻探索时间！今天我们要猛烈发掘……砰！啪！哇！这周我们看到了好多超赞的故事，现在就让我们一起冲进飞翔的艺术世界和天才小发明家的领域吧。
首先，让我们跟着风筝高飞，探访一座被称为“世界风筝之都”的城市。我们的目的地是——中国东部山东省的潍(Wéi)坊(fāng)。
想象一下，你正站在一片广阔的绿色草坪上。你感觉到微风轻轻拂过脸庞。你抬起头，天空不只是蓝色的。你能看到一条金色的龙在空中盘旋，一只彩虹凤凰展开它五彩斑斓的翅膀，还有一长串小燕子风筝在风中飞舞。这不是梦哦，这在潍坊是常见的景象。这座城市的风筝制作历史，已经超过2400年了！
根据当地的记载，这里的人们做风筝已经有两千多年了。自从蔡伦(Cài Lún)发明了造纸术，纸风筝开始在民间流行起来，这个手艺就更受欢迎了。2006年，潍坊风筝制作工艺被正式列入中国第一批国家级非物质文化遗产名录，意思就是说，它是一项受到保护的、非常特别的传统。简直是太厉害了！
制作一个这么奇妙的飞行物可不是一件容易的事儿。国家级传承人杨红伟解释说，做一个风筝需要36道工序，可以分成四大技艺——扎、糊、绘、放。她练习这门手艺已经超过40年，从长达300米的巨型风筝，到直径只有两厘米的微型风筝，她都能做。一个300米长的风筝！太不可思议了！这相当于三个标准足球场首尾相连那么长！
制作材料也是精心挑选的。像王永勋这样的风筝大师会选用生长了2到3年的竹子，因为它的强度和柔韧性都刚刚好。他们还研发了一种特殊的定制混合面料，又轻便又不褪色，取代了过去用的宣纸或丝绸。今天，潍坊已经是一个超大的风筝生产中心。全市有600多家风筝公司，雇用了大约8万名员工。他们的年销售额已经超过了20亿元人民币，产品卖到了50多个国家和地区。最近，这座城市还举办了第42届国际风筝节，吸引了来自51个国家的257支队伍。这个壮观的场面证明了，风筝是一门可以跨越文化和语言的艺术。如果你可以设计一个属于你自己的风筝，它会是什么样子的？它又会有什么特殊功能呢？
从古老的工艺到未来的科技，我们的第二个故事将展示年轻的发明家们是如何解决一些世界级的大难题的。
我们先来看看清华大学的一个团队。他们开发了一套超棒的低成本、免冲水的家用厕所系统，叫做“净·致”。想象一下，你正在一个寒冷、干旱的偏远村庄，那里没有下水道网络，水资源也很稀缺。这个团队发现，在这些地方，许多家庭还在使用不卫生的厕所。全球有35亿人仍然无法使用安全的卫生设施。这是一个很严重的问题，它引起的疾病会伤害很多孩子。
“净·致”系统就是一个绝妙的解决方案。它利用太阳能或风能给自己供电。它能分离废物，消除臭味，并把废物堆肥，变成对农民有用的肥料。它不需要任何水或外部电力，就能提供一个安全舒适的厕所。在过去十年里，这个团队走访了64个村庄，截至今年5月，他们的发明已经帮助了近9000户家庭。这个项目还赢得了詹姆斯·戴森奖的中国区冠军，这是一个鼓励下一代设计工程师的国际大奖。
但创新的脚步没有停下。另一位年轻发明家，来自中国药科大学的陈培红，创造了一套由人工智能驱动的药物3D打印系统。这台神奇的机器可以根据需要，现场生产个性化的药物。这下可帮了大忙了，对于那些住在偏远地区、需要特定药物的弱势群体来说，简直是福音。
在健康领域，来自上海交通大学的两位同学——卢汉文和宋鑫媛，开发了“ ScolioDetect ”（脊柱侧弯检测仪）。这是一个可穿戴的传感器系统，可以检测脊柱侧弯（jǐ zhù cè wān），就是脊柱不正常的弯曲。你看，要早期发现这个问题通常需要照X光，而X光是有辐射的。有了这个设备，一个人只需穿上它自然行走三分钟，设备就能把走路的姿态转换成脊柱弯曲的数据。它没有辐射，而且比X光快得多，特别适合在学校里进行筛查。
戴森奖的一位评委胡宏飞说，这些学生不仅展示了卓越的工程才能，更体现了他们的社会责任感。他们关注现实世界中的挑战，并用科技来创造解决方案。这些学生用科学解决了真实世界的问题。如果你有能力去发明一样东西，你会首先尝试解决你所在社区的什么问题呢？
听力问题（中英文）
How many procedures are required to make a Weifang kite, according to the news? (根据新闻，制作一个潍坊风筝需要多少道工序？)
What does the Pureco toilet system use for energy? (Pureco厕所系统使用什么来获取能源？)
What is the benefit of the ScolioDetect device compared to traditional X-rays for detecting scoliosis? (与传统的X光相比，ScolioDetect设备在检测脊柱侧弯方面有什么优点？)
How many households has the Pureco toilet system helped by May, as mentioned in the report? (根据报道，截至今年五月，Pureco厕所系统已经帮助了多少户家庭？)
参考答案（中英文)
It requires 36 procedures. (需要36道工序。)
It uses solar or wind energy. (它使用太阳能或风能。)
It is radiation-free and much faster. (它没有辐射，而且速度快得多。)
It has benefited nearly 9,000 households. (它已经帮助了近9000户家庭。)