Most of us use web browsers (浏览器) out of habit. However, there are a lot of similar apps for us to choose in the appstore. They serve the same purpose: visiting a website. So if the differences are minimal, why bother looking for something else?

As a matter of fact, a new type of internet navigator (导航器) , called a private browser, has emerged over the last three years. What stands out is that they minimize the data gathered about us by blocking the technologies used to track us, when most mainstream browsers, such as Chrome from Google, have been trying to develop a new way to target us with ads.

Private browsers generally rely on something called private mode, which is a browsing session that does not record a history of the websites you have visited. Firefox Focus, DuckDuckGo and Brave are all similar private browsers, but with some important differences.

Firefox Focus, available only for mobile devices like iPhones and Android smartphones, is the basic one. You input a web address and, when done browsing, hit the trash icon to erase the session. Quitting the app automatically purges the history.

The DuckDuckGo browser, also available only for mobile devices, is more like a traditional browser. The company says it is more focused on privacy because its ads do not track people's online behavior. When done browsing, you can hit the flame icon at the bottom to erase the session.

Brave is also more like a traditional web browser. It includes a private mode that must be turned on if you don't want people scrutinizing (仔细检查) your web history. Brave is so aggressive about blocking trackers that in the process, it almost always blocks ads entirely. The other private browsers block ads less frequently.

For most people, not seeing ads is undoubtedly a benefit. Brendan Eich, the chief executive of Brave, said, "If everybody used Brave, it would wipe out the tracking-based ad economy".

Count me in.

The number of seabirds killed by colliding（撞击） with wind turbines could be cut by painting black-and-white stripes on the blades（叶片）, and poles, say researchers. Graham Martin at the University. of Birmingham, UK, and Alex Banks at Natural England, a public organization that has a say in planning applications for offshore wind farms in England, wanted to design a pattern that could be easily painted onto turbines to reduce their impact on bird life.

Between 140, 000 and 328, 000 birds are killed each year by onshore wind turbines in the US, according to, one estimate. It is harder to tell how many birds are killed by offshore turbines each year, says Martin, as they fall into the ocean,

A previous study, published in 2020, looked at the effect of painting a single blade black on four onshore turbines in Norway. Bird collisions were reduced by 70 percent compared with all-white turbines nearby. Martin believes that further improvements could have an even greater impact. Based on analysis of previous studies into bird vision and bird collisions with wind turbines, the two researchers came up with a series of guiding principles to aid their design of a turbine that would harm. fewer birds.

"Most birds do not see too much fine detail in their vision - especially compared to humans, " says Martin, so any design shouldn't be too complex. Many collisions occur in low light, so the design should be easy to decipher in the dark, while high internal contrast would help the turbine stand out against different backgrounds, such as a cloudy or sunny sky. In low levels of light, black-and-white patterns are best, says Martin. "In the dark, a red-and-white pattern would rapidly look like shades of grey, " he says. The design hasn't yet been tested, but Martin hopes that manufacturers will consider it, particularly as it would be easy and cheap to implement.

In 1986, I watched my first soccer match on my parents' big box television. I was six, and ever since then, I have dreamed of attending the World Cup.

This year, I traveled to Brazil to make my dream a reality. The first match I attended was between Australia and Spain. Within minutes of walking into the stadium, I found myself surrounded by the excited fans, talking and cheering together. Unlike what one normally sees on the news, this match was mainly peaceful except for one fight. When the fight started, the whole section began chanting(呼喊)with one voice, asking those fighting to stop. When they didn't, the rabble-rousers were sent out by security guards minutes later.

What struck me about the games I attended was the sense of camaraderie. I met soccer fans from different countries. Sometimes we were cheering for the same team and sometimes for opposite teams, but that didn't stop us from becoming friends. The stands were not divided between teams, and the interaction was often spirit-lifting.

I also watched the game in Sao Paulo that ousted(淘汰)Brazil from the World Cup. I was with friends at a large bar which hosted a mix of Brazilian and German supporters. As Germany scored one goal after another, the sadness and even tears were visible on the faces of Brazilians. But German fans came to the Brazilians to comfort them and apologize that the game was ending with such a big gap. Everyone was hoping for a good match.

What I love about the World Cup is that it provides a chance for people to learn about other countries and cultures. People learn about the countries of the teams they support and about their opponents' history and culture. Soccer is a game that not only gives people the chance to learn about each other but also has the potential to unite people.

Sports can be a dividing force, but the true spirit of sports is about unity and fun. The matches at this World Cup have been exactly that so far, and I hope it remains so.