My sister and I grew up in a little village in England. Our father was a struggling lawyer, but I always knew he was special. He never criticized us, but used praise to bring out our best. He'd say, "If you pour water on flowers, they flourish (茂盛). If you don't give them water, they die." I remember as a child I said something unkind about somebody, and my father said, "Any time you say something unpleasant about somebody else, it's a reflection of you." He explained that if I looked for the best in people, I would get the best in return. From then on I've always tried to follow the principle in my life and later in running my company.

    Dad's also always been very understanding. At 15, I started a magazine. It was taking up a great deal of my time, and the headmaster of my school gave me a choice: stay in school or leave to work on my magazine.

    I decided to leave, and Dad tried to sway me from my decision at first, as any good father would. When he realized I had made up my mind, he said, "Richard, when I was 23, my dad persuaded me to go into law. And I've always regretted it. I wanted to be a biologist, but I didn't pursue my dream. You know what you want. Go fulfill it."

    As it turned out, my little publication went on to become Student, a national magazine for young people in the U.K. My wife and I have two children, and I'd like to think we are bringing them up in the same way Dad raised me.

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    Here is your best chance to travel around the UK in 2012: More than 200 B&Bs（bed & breakfast）across England, Scotland, Wales and Northern Ireland are selected to offer you amazing services for your stay at their lowest prices! Don't miss it. Just collect the vouchers（活动券）in our B&B Daily printed from 01/04/2012 to 07/04/2012 and book the stays for your travel following the terms and conditions below:

    The offer includes a room for the night and a breakfast the next morning.

The offer is of two kinds: ￡20 per room, valid（有效的）during stay period of 02/04/2012—31/05/2012 and then again 01/09/2012—31/10/2012；￡35 per room, per night, valid during stay period of 01/06/2012—31/08/2012.

    The offer is valid for a basic twin or double room only.

    The stay must be booked directly with the chosen B&Bs before 28/04/2012.

    Each voucher can only be used by the holder to book one room for one night.

    If voucher holders book either the ￡20 or ￡35 per room per night, any additional services such as lunch, evening meal or activities may require an extra charge. But these are not required in order to take up the offer. Please check directly with your chosen B&Bs to see what extra services are available.

    Vouchers must be presented on arrival. If no vouchers are presented, the     B&Bs may reserve（保留）the right to charge at full price for every night of stay.

    Vouchers may not be used together with any other offer.

    The voucher holders must pay for the stay in full at the time of booking. Additional ￡10 may be paid to confirm（确认）the booking and will be returned on arrival.

    The B&Bs reserve the right to refuse voucher holders' bookings for people under the age of 18.

    On my first day of high school, going into math class, I was pointed and laughed at by two of my classmates. I initially thought my fly was open, or that something was stuck in my teeth. But as I took my seat, I heard one student whisper, "Why is a black boy taking Honors?" So, my fly wasn't open. An honors level class had simply been taken by a student whose skin was brown.

    Many people think my clothes should be big enough for me to live in, or expect me to listen to only "black music." In seventh grade, a group of my classmates fixed their cold stares on my clothes. They called out to me, "Go get your gangsta clothes." In one of my Spanish classes, the teacher asked me, "Do you like rap music or rock music more?" I replied, "Rock." The look of shock on my classmates' faces made me uncomfortable.

    Now I still take all Honors courses. I still wear clothes that fit me. My music library covers from rock to pop to techno, and almost everything in between. When it comes to choosing my friends, I am still colorblind. I continue to do my best to work in school in order to reach my goals; and yet, when I look in the mirror, I still see skin of that same brown.

    I believe in being myself. I believe that I myself should decide who I am and what actions I take in life. In high school, popularity often depends on your willingness to follow trends. And I've been told that it doesn't get much easier going into adulthood. But the only other option is to sacrifice my personality for the satisfaction and approval of others. This can be appealing, but I'm not going to do that.

Smoking is harmful.But as soon as you quit the habit, everything will be OK,right?Wrong.

New research has found that even if you give up smoking, the damage it has done to your genes will stay there for a much longer time.In the research, a team of US scientists studied the blood of 16,000 people.Among them, some were smokers, some used to smoke, and the rest were non-smokers.Scientists compared their genes and found that more than 7,000 genes of smokers had changed--a number that is one-third of known human genes.

According to NBC News, both heart disease and cancer are caused by genetic changes.Some people may have had the changes when they were born, but most people get them in their day-to-day lives while doing things like smoking.

When you stop smoking, a lot of these genes will return to normal within five years.

This means your body is trying to heal (治愈) itself of the harmful effects of smoking.But the changes in some of the genes stay for longer.They can stay for as long as 30 years.It's almost like leaving a footprint on wet cement (水泥)—it will always be there,even when you've walked away and when the cement becomes dry.

Although the study results may make people unhappy, there is a bright side:the findings could help scientists invent medicine to treat genetic damage caused by smoking or find ways to tell which people have heart disease or cancer risks.

Coding(编码) apps and programming apps for kids are becoming increasingly popular. Here are some of the best apps for teaching kids to code.

Scratch

Scratch is by far the most popular coding app for kids, and it is now used in many schools all over the world. It is available for free on the web as well as for Android and iOS, which is why it is so popular. Created in 2003 by MIT students and staff, its coding language is designed for children aged 7 to 16.

The language employs visual blocks or bricks that can be dragged and dropped on a workspace to construct logical chains. As a result, the child will have a better understanding of the fundamental principles of coding.

Daisy the Dinosaur

Daisy the Dinosaur is a free iPad and iPhone programming app. What distinguishes it from the rest is that it is designed specifically for children aged 4 to 7. The app was developed by the same team that created the Hopscotch coding app for kids. If you've ever used that app, Daisy the Dinosaur has a similar user-friendly interface with limited features that is best for beginners.

Cargo-Bot

Cargo-Bot is a free coding app that is available for both Android and iOS devices. It is appropriate for children aged 10 and up. This app specialises in puzzle challenges involving a robotic arm that must be programmed to perform various tasks, most notably moving coloured boxes to create a specific design or pattern.

Kodable

Another relatively well-known coding app for kids is Kodable.' It is free for: both the iPhone and iPad, but there is no option for Android or the web. Kodable is appropriate for both younger children and older teenagers(from 8 years old and up). It is also remarkable for guiding users from a basic to a complex level of coding.

The approach is very game-like, with users able to select a character to guide them through the levels.

An optional college course named "Appreciation of the Jiangxi Opera" has been taught in a packed house recently at Nanchang University in east China's Jiangxi Province due to the professor's innovative way of teaching—putting on actual opera performances in her classrooms.

Waving water sleeves, and spinning folding fans while wearing traditional makeup and costumes, Chen Li, the instructor of this course, displayed the enchanting charm of Jiangxi Opera, a several-hundred-year-old local opera, in front of the students. Many of the students recorded the performances and posted the video clips of the class on social media platforms, receiving millions of views and likes from netizens.

Instead of adopting the traditional form of stage play, Chen devotes more attention to her students' interactive experience. "I invite my students to come to the stage and experience the whole process of the performance by themselves," Chen said.

The course which she teaches has been open for many years, mainly introducing the history, tunes and performance characteristics of Jiangxi Opera. It's not well known that this course, which is full of people now, was originally rarely attended. "Before, I used to focus on the form of speech and lectures while the teaching effect was unsatisfying: the classroom was quiet and the students seemed uninterested, many even playing on their phones in class," said Chen. To stir the enthusiasm of the students, Chen decided to put on a costume and turn the class into a stage to perform. With traditional garments (服装) and brandishing water sleeves, students are immersed in the world of Jiangxi Opera.

Faced with the unexpected fame, Chen was satisfied but also realized that a greater responsibility now rested on her shoulders. "I hope that even though the popularity of the Jiangxi Opera fades, this art can still be passed down through generations." Chen said.