A boy thought that he was the most unhappy person in the world. He thought he was 1 because almost everything bad always happened to him. So he wanted to 2 the secret (秘密) to happiness. He walked a long way and finally came to a beautiful 3. There he met the king（国王）.

     After learning why the boy had come, the king advised that he should  4 the palace and come back in two hours. "At the same time, I want you to hold (拿住) this spoon with milk," said the king. "As you walk around my palace, carry(携带) this spoon 5spilling(溢出) the milk."

    The boy kept his 6 on the spoon and began to walk around the fantastic palace. After 7 hours, he came back to the king. "Well," asked the king. "Did you see the wonderful paintings in 8 palace? Did you see the colorful flowers in the garden(花园)?" The boy felt 9 because he saw nothing. He 10 paid attention(注意) to the milk.

    "Then go back and see the beauty of my world," said the king. 11 time the boy saw all of the works of art on the walls. He saw the greatest gardens and mountains all around. 12 he came back, he described everything he saw.

    "But where is the 13?" asked the king. Looking down at the spoon he was holding, the boy saw there was 14 on the spoon. "Well, there is only one piece of advice I can 15 you," said the king. "The secret to happiness is to see all the beauty of the world and also keep an eye on the milk on the spoon."

Jenny is excited to go to school these days. The 13-year-old girl from South Gate Middle School in Los Angeles, US, is taking care of three green abalones(鲍鱼) at school.

The students of Violeta Llamas' science class, including Jenny, have cared for the sea animals since January. The science class has eight teams. Each team takes turns to care for the abalones. Team Five—Jenny, Alexis, Jennifer and Ricardo—have now got their turn.

The abalones are kept in a box of seawater. Every day, Alexis checks if the water has too much salt. Too much salt is bad for the health of the abalones. Jenny makes fresh seawater. Then the four students work together to clean up the waste in the box and give some food to the abalones.

    "Sea life is like a baby. You have to clean them and care for them. " Jennifer said.

Nancy Cruso, a scientist, leads the project. She said the number of green abalones is going down because people have caught too many of them. She said protecting the sea lives now depends on the young students.

"The students love taking care of the abalones. " said Llamas.

"Taking care of the abalones could open the door for those who want to be a sea life scientist or an environment protector," she said.

The students' time with the abalones will end this school year. Cruso and a team of volunteers will record the abalones and then let them return to the sea.

I am having a good time visiting my aunt in Thailand now. She is working here. It's really a beautiful place. You can do a lot here. I like outdoor activities like {#blank#}1{#/blank#}, biking and diving (潜水). All of these are wonderful. I visit many temples (寺庙) and learn about their history. I also learn a lot about elephants here. The elephant is one of Thailand's {#blank#}2{#/blank#}. The first flag of Thailand had a white elephant on it. Elephants can play soccer or music. They can walk for a long time and never get {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. They can also remember places {#blank#}4{#/blank#} food and water. It's really cool, isn't it? I also miss my parents very much. I like Thailand and my vacation here, but there is {#blank#}5{#/blank#} "no place like home".

 How do astronauts stop bone and muscle (肌肉) lose? Do water fly away when astronauts have a drink? On Dec 9, Chinese astronauts Zhai Zhigang, Wang Yaping and Ye Guangfu gave a lesson on Tiangong Space Station. They did some science experiments (实验). Lots of students watched it and learned many amazing science facts. 

Use it or lose it

The human body grows with the pull of Earth's gravity (重力). But in space, our bones and muscles don't need to support our body's weight. This will make bone and muscle lose. It is dangerous for them. 

Astronauts have different ways to solve the problem. For example, Ye Guangfu was wearing a special uniform. There are many elastic bands (弹力带) inside it. Astronauts use their muscles to stretch (拉伸) the bands. This keeps their muscles strong. 

Wang Yaping also showed students how she walked on a treadmill (跑步机) and rode a bicycle. Astronauts exercise with these tools every day to stop muscle loss. 

____

During another experiment, Wang made a water film (膜). Then she added more water drops onto the film to make it a water ball. This can never happen on the earth. Why?

We need to first understand the surface tension (表面张力) of water. Surface tension is like a"skin" （皮肤） of water. The "skin" is there because water molecules (分子) are drawn to each other. On the earth, gravity is too strong and it breaks the "skin". But with zero gravity in space, the "skin" stays strong and the water ball won't break. 

Space water is different in many other ways from that on the earth. For example, water won't fall down if you pour it into a cup. That's why astronauts usually drink water through straws (吸管). If astronauts cry, the tears won't fall down. They'll stay on their eyeballs.