Driverless technology will soon enter another major global industry: shipping. Several companies recently announced plans to launch self-sailing ships to improve safety and efficiency.

Kongsberg developed the ship's electrical technology and autonomous control systems. The ship is fully electric to reduce air pollution. It is designed to carry goods containers normally transported by truck. This means the ship will also improve road safety by replacing about 40, 000 truck trips a year. The company plans to operate the ships by far-away control beginning sometime next year. By 2020, the ships should be loading and sailing themselves. While Yara's ships will be limited to Norway at first, the company plans to greatly expand its autonomous shipping operations in the coming years.

Another company putting a high priority（优先）to self-sailing ships is the world's largest mining company, Australia's BHP Billiton. The company's Vice President of Freight, Rashpal Bhai, recently spoke about the technology in a website post. Bhatti believes automation will be one of the biggest changes for shipping in the future. He said, "Autonomous ships offer important opportunities to improve safety and provide more effective results to the supply chain of the sea. "He added that self-sailing ships could become a reality within the next decade.

Rolls-Royce, the British automobile and engine manufacturer（制造商）, is also developing unmanned（无人驾驶的）shipping technologies. Oskar Levander is the company's head of operations at sea. He said in a conference last year, "This is happening. It's not if, it's when. "

Levander said these autonomous ships could be controlled by far-away operators from anywhere. He added, "Because these ships will be designed to be unmanned, they can be built smaller, more efficient and environmentally friendly. "

   Technology has enabled people to connect fast and across vast distances. 【小题1】 Therefore, it is important to find ways to communicate better, while we are still keeping pace with the demands of the modern day.

Cut back on texting. Texting is a good way of keeping in touch and communicating with another person if calling him is not possible. Unless you can’t help it, give up the habit of texting — while walking, eating or driving — because texting is not real communication. 【小题2】 Calling is a great way of enhancing conversations because it’s more direct, with a greater chance of successful communication.

【小题3】 We are more willing to spend time on Facebook than actually leave our desks and have a conversation with the person working right next to us. A good way of improving real-life communication is to log off or keep yourself away from social media.

Meet people face-to-face. The next time you want to open Facebook to chat with a friend, call him up and meet him instead. 【小题4】 Take time to meet the person who matters to you and you will get a kind of communication and relationship that staring at a screen just can’t provide.

Technology is a tool. It is worth remembering that technology is only a tool we have. 【小题5】Use social networks to find people, to reconnect with friends, to support a cause and to contribute to the bigger picture in a more real manner.

Can you imagine wear a pretty sweater made from garbages? It could happen! A few companies across the country are making clothes from things that are being thrown away by people. For example, company makes sweaters of old plastic bottles. First, the bottles are cut into small pieces. The pieces are melted. Then the melting plastic is made into long and thin threads. The threads are used to make sweaters which feels very soft and light.

Believe it or not, these sweaters sell good in spite of the fact which they are not cheap at all. Many people thought that these recycled clothes can help us cut down on garbage.

   Scientists are debating how to limit their newly-discovered power to change genetic structure. Scientists have already changed the genes of farm animals and agricultural plants to make them more productive or stronger. But now they can also change genes in wild animals and plants. These genes would continue into later generations. For example，it may be possible for scientists' to remove from existence the kind of mosquitoes that carry the Zika virus. They might also be able to permanently remove species of plants and animals that are destructive to other species.

In a report published last week，the U.S. National Academies of Sciences，Engineering and Medicine said it supports continuing research on this kind of gene control. But it warned that it is not possible to know what will happen when these changed plants and animals are released into the wild.

Sixteen biologists，ethicists（伦理学家）and policymakers are on a National Academy of Sciences（NAS）committee that is examining the issue. They say that there is value to the new technology. But，they say，there is not enough evidence to support the release of changed organisms（生物）from the laboratory into nature.

Many people would support stopping mosquitoes and rats from carrying diseases. But scientists say we must understand the possible scientific，ethical，legal and social results of such action before we decide whether to take it. Gene modification is spread through reproduction（繁殖）.Changed genes will continue to spread as long as an animal or plant continues to reproduce. They cannot be limited to a farm or kept within a country's borders. Scientists are wondering what may happen if a changed organism mates with another species. They are not yet sure how the changed genes would affect the other species. It is possible that those genes could harm those creatures or even lead to their disappearance from our planet.