Good manners are important, but you can easily make a social blunder when you visit a foreign country, because sometimes good manners in one place are bad manners in other places.

    Suppose you visit some friends in Mongolia and they ask you to eat with them. What kind of manners do they want you to have? They want you to give a loud “burp” after you finish eating. Burping shows that you like your food. But in some other countries, if you give a loud “burp”, you are supposed to say, “Excuse me, please.”

    In many places people like to eat together. But in some parts of Polynesia it is bad manners to be seen eating together. People show their good manners by turning their backs on others while they eat.

    What are manners like in an East African town? The people try not to see you. When you are visiting a friend, he may not see you at all. If you are polite, you will sit down beside him. You will wait until he finishes what he is doing. Then he will talk to you.

    If you visit a friend in Arabia you should walk behind other tents until you come to his tent. If you pass in front of other tents, you will be asked into each one. The people will ask you to eat with them. And it is bad manners if you say no.

    Manners are different all over the world. But it is good to know that all manners help people show that they want to be friends.

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    More and more people like bicycling and it is no surprise. It is fun, healthy and good for the environment. Maybe that's why there are 1.4 billion bicycles and only 400 million cars on roads worldwide today. Bikes can take you almost anywhere, and there is no oil cost!

    Get on a bicycle and ride around your neighbourhood. You may discover something new all around you. Stopping and getting off a bike is easier than stopping and getting out of your car.

    You can bike to work and benefit (受益) from the enjoyable exercise without polluting  the environment. You don't even have to ride all the way. Folding (折叠) bikes work well for people who ride the train. Just fold the bike and take it with you. You can do the same on an airplane. A folding bike can be packed in a suitcase. You can also take a common bike with you when you fly. But be sure to look for information by getting on airline websites. Not all airlines are bicycle-friendly to travellers.

Health Benefits of Bicycling:

    It helps to prevent heart diseases.

    Bicycling helps to control your weight.

    A 15-minute bike ride to and from work three times a week burns off five kilos of fat in a year.

    Bicycling can improve your mood (心情).

    Exercise like bicycling has been shown to make people feel better, more relaxed and self-confident.

    Bicycling is healthier than driving.

My Experience in Ghana

    I decided to take part in an exchange program in Ghana. The 30 of us participating in the program met up the first morning in Ghana to meet Fred, our guide in Ghana.

    We boarded the bus to Senase, a village of 3,000 in Northwest Ghana. Once we got to the village, we were greeted by the queen mother and the other elders. A young girl performed a dance for us with Ghanaian drums, and then the elders each thanked us for coming to the village and helping their children and their schools.

    After our meeting ended, we split up into three groups and went to different schools, spending most of the day handing out toothbrushes and school supplies, meeting with the children, and playing games with various classes. It was really interesting to see the schools and to see what all of the different classes were learning.

    We got back to our host's house that night literally seconds before the skies opened up over Senase, and since the power was out, Fred, Cari (my roommate) and I sat out under the roof listening to the pouring rain and talking about our lives. We were able to hear Fred's story, which was absolutely incredible. I can say it gave me a new sense of respect for the Ghanaian people, their unity in the face of tremendous hardship, and the immense amount of care and love they hold in their hearts, not only for their families but their entire community.

    The next day we performed our dance for one of the schools, to the delight (and laughter) of the children, queen mother, and principal. After that we were on the bus heading back.

    During the bus ride, new thoughts and questions filled my mind. Where is this fire Senase lit in my heart going to take me, and how can I feed it and build it into real change? How do I bring this back to my community, and then back home to my family and friends? These were only a few of the questions that I was struggling with and continue to struggle with, and I can't say I have found any answers yet. All I know is that Senase did light a fire within me, and I refuse to ever let it burn out.

    The 90-minute documentary, Amazing China, which is co-produced by China Central Television and China Film Corp, opened in theaters nationwide on Friday.

    The film focuses on the major achievements the country has made since the 18th National Congress of the Communist Party of China in 2012 under Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era（时代）.

    The documentary focuses on key Chinese infrastructure（基础设施）projects in aerospace, high-speed rail, the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge and the world's largest single-dish telescope FAST.

    The documentary also informs viewers that seven of the world's 10 biggest sea ports are now in China. And that the country now has the longest high-speed rail network in the world.

    Speaking of the significance of the new documentary for the Chinese, La Peikang, the head of China Film Corp, says: “It's not only about showing the achievements, but presenting the status quo of China.

    “The film will help people to know our country better. The moving stories behind the Chinese miracles reflect the people's endeavors and spirit.”

A good documentary is usually a vivid portrayal（描绘）of individual stories rather than slogans, and Amazing China is no exception.

    One of the most touching moments in the film is probably footage from an interview of Nan Rendong, often called the “father of FAST”.

    Amazing China also focuses on common people.

    In the film, you see a young Tibetan woman volunteering in rural areas to help people poverty.

    The movie shows that their work is not easy, but their spirit and unwavering belief make it possible to achieve their targets. And, they are just representative of the many Chinese who work as hard.

    China is the world's second-largest economy. But the country still faces “the contradiction between unbalanced and inadequate development and the people's ever-growing needs for a better life”, as stated in the CPC's 19th National Congress in November. However, as this cinematic production proves, the documentary is a good way for country to boost self-confidence and to aspire for a brighter future.

    There are a couple different things that make ramen noodles an unhealthy choice. There's not much to these provision packets besides salt and carbohydrates. While those certainly get thrown around quite a bit as “bad-for-you” comments, you may not know how they actually harm your body. Firstly, there's the fact that most instant ramen servings contain over 1100 milligrams of sodium-that's approaching half of the maximum you should eat per day. When you take in that much sodium in a single sitting, your body overcompensates by holding more water. This can cause temporary water weight gain, leaving you feeling bloated(肿胀)and lacking in energy.

    But while you may feel bloated, chances are you won't feel full. Since the ramen contains lots of refined carbohydrates with virtually no protein or fiber, it's essentially the very definition of empty calories. And you've probably heard the song-and-dance about refined carbs; eating too much can lead your blood sugar to increase and then decrease, leaving you hungry and ready to eat again-which leads to weight gain.

    And, perhaps most upsetting of all, this quick-and-easy meal may stay with you much longer than you realize. Massachusetts General Hospital's Dr. Braden Kuo used a pill-sized camera to record the digestive tracts of volunteers who ate processed ramen noodles as well as fresh ones. With a video, Dr. Kuo was able to show that, after two hours when the fresh noodles were long gone, the ramen noodles were still there in the intestines.

    Doctors do know that years of eating the instant packets are linked to poor health. Another study, this one by the Harvard School of Public Health, assessed the long-term consequences of ramen consumption in South Korea, where it's a major course. They found that subjects, women in particular, who ate instant noodles at least twice a week had a 68 percent higher risk of diabetes and heart disease-than subjects who ate a more consistently natural diet.

    In short, eating ramen once in a while won't damage your health-as is true with most processed foods. But it's not something you should make a habit of-for your stomach and heart's sake.

    When you are sitting in the car, do you ever notice the drivers looking over their shoulders or side to side in the car? Well, they are doing this to check their blind spots! Blind spots make driving extremely difficult and increase the potential for car accidents.

    Fourteen-year-old Alaina Gassier from Pennsylvania noticed her mother struggling with blind spots while driving their family car. So she came up with an ingenious solution that won the first place and $ 25,000 in the Broadcom Masters Competition.

    Blind spots are the areas around the car that cannot be directly observed by the driver. There are two kinds of blind spots-on the back of the car that cannot be seen with mirrors, and blind spots at the front of the car as well.

    When a driver is changing lanes, he has to look over his shoulder through the side windows to make sure that there is no vehicle in the blind spot. This invisible area is big enough to hide a car!

    The other blind spot is created in the front by the A-pillar(柱子)-the material on either side on the windshield(挡风玻璃)that holds the glass and forms the frame of the car. In some cars, this pillar can be quite thick. Usually, people or cyclists can be hidden by this pillar.

    Alaina's design was to get rid of the blind spot created by the front A-pillar of the car, the one that helps hold up the windshield.

    She put a camera on the outside passenger side of the car which then sent the photos to a projector above the driver's head. Then, she covered the inside of the pillar in a reflective fabric onto which the image was projected. Basically, her device made the pillar "see through" and removed the blind spot on that side of the car.

    Alaina's solution is very creative and could be improved by using LCD displays that will make it easier to see during day time as well.