If you want to disturb the car industry， you'd better have a few billion dollars： Mom﹣and﹣pop carmakers are unlikely to beat the biggest car companies． But in agriculture， small farmers can get the best of the major players． By connecting directly with customers， and by responding quickly to changes in the markets as well as in the ecosystems（生态系统）， small farmers can keep one step ahead of the big guys． As the co﹣founder of the National Young Farmers Coalition （NYFC， 美国青年农会）and a family farmer myself， I have a front﹣row seat to the innovations among small farmers that are transforming the industry．

    For example， take the Quick Cut Greens Harvester， a tool developed just a couple of years ago by a young farmer， Jonathan Dysinger， in Tennessee， with a small loan from a local Slow Money group． It enables small﹣scale farmers to harvest 175 pounds of green vegetables per hour﹣a huge improvement over harvesting just a few dozen pounds by hand﹣suddenly making it possible for the little guys to compete with large farms of California． Before the tool came out， small farmers couldn't touch the price per pound offered by California farms． But now， with the combination of a better price point and a generally fresher product， they can stay in business．

    The sustainable success of small farmers， though， won't happen without fundamental changes to the industry． One crucial factor is secure access to land． Competition from investors，developers， and established large farmers makes owning one's own land unattainable for many new farmers．From 2004 to 2013， agricultural land values doubled， and they continue to rise in many regions．

    Another challenge for more than a million of the most qualified farm workers and managers is a non﹣existent path to citizenship ﹣ the greatest barrier to building a farm of their own． With farmers over the age of 65 outnumbering（多于）farmers younger than 35 by six to one， and with two﹣thirds of the nation's farmland in need of a new farmer， we must clear the path for talented people willing to grow the nation's food．

    There are solutions that could light a path toward a more sustainable and fair farm economy，but farmers can't clumsily put them together before us． We at the NYFC need broad support as we urge Congress to increase farmland conservation， as we push for immigration reform， and as we seek policies that will ensure the success of a diverse and ambitious next generation of farmers from all backgrounds． With a new farm bill to be debated in Congress， consumers must take a stand with young farmers．

The sharing economy, represented by companies like Airbnb or Uber, is the latest fashion craze. But many supporters have overlooked the reality that this new business model is largely based on escaping regulations and breaking the law.

Airbnb is an internet-based service that allows people to rent out spare rooms to strangers for short stays. Uber is an internet taxi service that allows thousands of people to answer ride requests with their own cars. There are hundreds of other such services.

The good thing about the sharing economy is that it promotes the use of underused resources. Millions of people have houses or apartments with empty rooms, and Airbnb allows them to profit from these rooms while allowing guests a place to stay at prices that are often far less than those charged by hotels. Uber offers prices that are competitive with standard taxi prices and their drivers are often much quicker and more trustworthy.

But the downside of the sharing economy has gotten much less attention. Most cities and states both tax and regulate hotels, and the tourists who stay in hotels are usually an important source of tax income. But many of Airhnb’s customers are not paying the taxes required under the law.

Airbnb can also raise issues of safety for its customers and trouble for hosts' neighbors. Hotels are regularly inspected to ensure that they are not fire traps and that they don't form other risks for visitors. Airbnb hosts face no such inspections.

Since Airbnb is allowing people to escape taxes and regulations, the company is simply promoting thefts. Others in the economy will lose by bearing an additional tax burden or being forced to live next to an apartment unit with a never-ending series of noisy visitors.

The same story may apply with Uber. Uber is currently in disputes over whether its cars meet the safety and insurance requirements imposed on standard taxis. Also, if Uber and related services flood the market, they could harm all taxi drivers' ability to earn a minimum wage.

This downside of the sharing needs to be taken seriously, hut that doesn't mean the current tax and regulatory structure is perfect.

Americans have always been interested in their Presidents' wives. Many First Ladies have been remembered because of the ways they have influenced their husbands. Other First Ladies have made the history books on their own.

     At least two First Ladies, Bess Truman and Lady Bird Johnson, made it their business to send signals during their husbands speeches. When Lady Bird Johnson thought her husband was talking too long, she wrote a note and sent it up to the platform. It read, "It's time to stop ! " And he did.  Once Bess Truman didn't like what  her husband was saying on television, so she phoned him and said, "If you can't talk more politely than that in public, you come right home. "

      It was First Lady Helen Taft's idea to plant the famous cherry trees in Washington, D. C. Each spring these blossoming trees attract thousands of visitors to the nation's capital Mrs. Taft also influenced the male members of her family and the White House staff in a strange way: she persuaded them to shave off their beards(胡须) !

     Shortly after President Woodrow Wilson suffered a stroke (中风),  Edith Wilson unofficially took over most of the duties of the Presidency until the end of her husband's term  Earlier, during World War I, Mrs.  Wilson had sheep brought onto the White House lawn to eat t e grass. The sheep not only kept the lawn cut. but provided wool for an auction(拍卖) held by the First Lady. Almost$ 100,000 was raised for the Red Cross.

     One of the most famous First Ladies was Eleanor Roosevelt, the wife of President Franklin D. Roosevelt. She was active in political and. social causes throughout her husband's term in office After his death, she became famous for her humanitarian(人道主义的) work in the United Nations. She made life better for thousands of needy people around the world.

China’s online retailers(零售商)are busy preparing for what has become the country’s annual online shopping festival on November 11.

November 11 is a date made up of four ones, and“double eleven”has always been considered a special day for single men and women in China. Five years ago the Internet retailer Alibaba began promoting it as a shopping festival, and it has now turned to be the country’s busiest day for online retailers and millions of shopping lovers.

JD. com is trying to attract more retailers by offering them free delivery service for a month. Alibaba itself has invited some 30, 000 offline stores to participate in the online shopping party. More than 20, 000 vendors on Alibaba’s sites——Tmall and Taobao are promising 50 percent discounts on the day. Shanghai- based Yhd. com, also called Yihaodian, a Chinese e-commerce company that is majority-owned by Wal-Mart Stores, is setting up a special sale of imported foods.

Last year Alibaba earned 19. 1 billionyuan in sales during the double eleven promotions. And a 100 billion yuanlogistics(物流)network was set up by Alibaba this May that aims to make 24-hour deliveries possible.

The major logistics player Shentong shipped more than 8 million items during“double eleven. ”Shentong has more than 150, 000 staff, and expects things to be even busier this year. Yang Jinghai, director of Human Resources of Shentong Express, says, “We have hired 30 percent more staff for double eleven, and we have couriers’(快递员)bonuses ready. ”

On double eleven China’s e-commerce sites receive more visits than the entire population of Brazil. It is believed that China will replace the US as the world’s top e-commerce market this year.

 Millions of people die of hunger in southern Africa every year, but when Zambia was offered thousands of tons of free corn by the US, the government politely said no.

“We don’t know whether the food is safe,” said Zambia’s Commerce, Trade and Industry Minister Dipak Patel.

His worries are shared by countries around the world that are in two minds about America’s genetically modified (GM转基因) crops. Just last week, EU (欧盟) member nations were discussing whether or not to import GM sweet corn from the US.

Ever since people started farming, they have tried to crossbreed (杂交) plants to make them stronger or better tasting. At one time, only related plants could be crossed with each other.

But when GM techniques were developed in the 1970s, scientists were able to put a single gene from a living creature into an unrelated creature.

This means they can make crops more productive and resistant (抵抗的) to disease by adding genes from other species. They can also create food with special characteristics, such as “golden rice”, which is enriched with vitamin A. But many people believe GM foods are a health risk.

“If left to me, I would certainly not eat GM foods,” said Scottish scientist Arpad Pusztai. “We are putting new things into food which haven’t been eaten before. The effects on the immune system (免疫系统) are not easy to predict.”

At the moment, the official argument is that GM foods “are not likely to present risks for human health”. But there are still many questions to be answered as the foods are produced in different ways.

Some experts believe the genetic material added to plants can transfer to humans and give damage to our bodies. Further harm could be caused by the genes from GM plants crossbreeding with naturally produced crops.

There is no doubt that the United States has entered a brand new age, because Donald Trump, the country’s 45^th president, is very different from any president before him.

Unlike Hillary Clinton, his opponent, and most former US presidents, who entered the election after years of being politicians, Trump, 70, was a New York real estate businessman.

And he was not a presidential candidate who worked hard to keep a perfect public image of a man who was always caring, fair and wise.

Instead, Trump is famous for being bad-tempered, arrogant(傲慢的) and hateful toward those who disagree with him. He also hates immigrants, both from Latin America and the Middle East, for many problems in the US. This has caused a dangerous division in the country—a country made up of many various races.

But to his supporters, the fact that Trump is not a typical politician is actually one of his advantages. His habit of never hiding his opinions is also considered by many to be a sign that he is not a hypocrite like many politicians are.

 “We have seen our country take a downturn in the eyes of the world. We need to go in a different direction, ” Binyomin Weisswasser, 39, a man from Chicago, told the Chicago Tribune. “Trump’s not a politician... I like that he is not always politically correct and speaks his mind. It gives me the feeling that what you see is what you get. You may not like it, but you know what it is.”

But interestingly, many who elected Trump actually followed the “lesser of two evils” principle—one that people use when faced with picking from two unpleasant options—simply because they didn’t think Clinton was a better choice.

“He’s the candidate I disagree less with, ” Jack Stucky, 20, a student at Norwestern University, told the Chicago Tribune. “I don’t think I’d say Donald Trump is going to be the best president ever, but I did think he’d be better than Hillary Clinton.”

It’s true that the US is entering a new age. It’s just not clear yet what kind of age it’s going to be.

Half off usually unaffordable products? Only $49.99 for that $100,00 dinner? That’s the magic of Groupon, but for some small business owners the “great business” offered by Groupon can be equal to the kiss of death. How could that occur?

    The math of Groupon seems simple at a glance, but upon further inspection the numbers don’t add up when it comes to smaller businesses. A Groupon typically offers a 50% discount on a product or service, then the remaining profit is divided between Groupon and the small business. While Groupon has already received the profit in advance, the merchant is left waiting for their cut. Those worrying numbers are assuming the price cut is 50/50, which, in some cases, is being generous.

    When you break it down to numbers, a Groupon deal seems disastrous, but it’s not only the numbers small business owners have to worry about. The point of Groupon deals is to attract new and hopefully long-term customers. Yet, does this actually happen? The majority of consumers buying the Croupon are there for the bargain and don’t return after using their Groupon. CFHS Junior Angelita Pope stated, “I love the deals offered by Groupon! They can really save you so much money.” However, she went on to say that she hadn’t returned once to any of the businesses after using her Groupon.

    For some small businesses, the pressure lies with the responses of their loyal customers, who watch as new faces get the same product or service for half the price that they have been paying for years. When you break it down, Groupon indicates that the business offering the deal is not only willing to be flexible with their price, but also that their product or service isn’t worth the price they’re charging for. When combining these factors, it’s no wonder loyal customers are put off by the idea of their favorite shop offering Groupons.

    Now I by no means say Groupon has bad effects on all businesses; however, the storm of Groupon is actually a disaster for a small business.