How cool can libraries be in an era of iPods and Kindles? Morethan you think．Only if youknow where to go.

Central Library: Seattle, Washington, United States

The Central Library in Seattle is modern and fashionable and hastourists from around the world paying visits and taking tours. It was designedby Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and American designer Joshua Ramus. Tours beganin 2006, two years after its opening. The library holds various artexhibitions, book signings and other events, while visitors can stop by theChocolate cart for a coffee and scan through the gift shop anytime.

Trinity College Library: Dublin, Ireland

The Trinity College Library in Dublin is the oldest library inIreland, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I. It is the largest single libraryin the world, also known as the Long Room, which contains more than 200,000 ofthe library's oldest books. The Long Room houses one of the oldest harps（竖琴）in Ireland.Dating to the 15th century, the old harp is the model for the symbol foreland.

Geisel Library, University of California: San Diego, UnitedStates

At first glance, it looks like a spaceship. Architect WilliamPereira, who helped design actual space launch facilities at Cape Canaveral inHouston, Texas, designed the library in 1970. It has been featured in sci-fifilms, short stories and novels. The library hosts “Dinner in the Library,”which invites readers for cocktails, and also a special speech fromdistinguished authors．

TU Delft Library: The Netherlands

The library at the Delft University of Technology wasconstructed in 1997 and has more than 862,000 books, 16,000 magazinesubscriptions and its own museum．The buildingitself exists beneath the ground, so you can't really see the actual Library.What makes it interesting is the roof, which is a grassy hill. The roof covers5,500 square meters. And it has become one of the most striking and greeneststructures in the area.

    It used to be a matter of fact when Peter Pan – a character from James Matthew Barrie's 1911 book – said: “All children, except one, grow up.”

    But this “fact” doesn't seem to apply to today's world anymore.

    According to the NPD Group, a US market research company, sales of toys to adults in the UK increased by more than 20 percent in 2016, three times the pace of the children's toy market itself. These toys ranged from puzzles and Lego building sets to vehicle models and action figures. And more than half of the sales came from millennials – people born between the 1980s and 2000s.

    “Adults of the 21st century are channeling (疏导) their inner child, one toy at a time,” commented website Koreaboo. This is also why these adults are sometimes referred to as “kidults”.

    According to Frederique Tutt, an analyst at NPD, the motivation of these grown-ups is to escape the stress of today's fast-paced world. They are driven toward the more immediate pleasures brought by toys than those brought by, say, getting a promotion, which is far less easy to achieve.

    “It reminds me of the playful side of life,” Rob Willner, a 25-year-old PhD student in the UK, told The Telegraph when talking about his love for Lego, which he said brings him both comfort and entertainment.

    Despite this, some social scientists see the trend as disturbing. To Frank Furendi, a professor at the University of Kent in the UK, the fact that so many adults are pursuing “the thrills (刺激) of youth” is the evidence that “adulthood has got nothing attractive about it anymore”, he told The New York Times.u “That's actually quite sad.”

    But scientists are probably just worrying too much. According to Canadian comic book artist Todd McFarlane, collecting toys could simply be a way for people to express their individuality (个性).

    “It's just pop culture stuff. It's stuff that says, 'I like a little of this and I like a little of that',” he told ABC News. “[It's] no big deal.”

    So now that over 100 years have passed since Peter Pan, perhaps it's time to introduce a new “fact”, as stated in the tagline (品牌宣传词) of the UK fashion brand KIDULT: “Growing old is mandatory (强制性的), but growing up is optional.”

    A Chinese team claimed victory at an international e-sports（电子竞技）championship held in Paris on Sunday.

    Royal Never Give Up beat South Korean team Dragon X 3-1 to lift the crown at the League of Legends Mid-Season Invitational 2018. It marked the first time in 1,106 days that a South Korean team had been defeated by a team from elsewhere at a major international League of Legends tournament（锦标赛）.

    League of Legends is a multiplayer online battle arena video game that was launched in 2009 and rapidly built a following among members of the competitive gaming community. The tournament in Paris featured teams from 13 countries and regions competing for cash and a place in the global rankings.

    Royal Never Give Up entered the contest fresh from their victory at the spring season of the Tencent League of Legends Pro League, the top level of China's professional League of Legends league system. Their win in Paris was largely owing to star player Jian Zihao, aka Uzi. “I've been trying to win this title for six years now,” Jian said on stage following the victory. “I can't imagine I'm standing here with this trophy. I'm super excited for this moment.” Royal Never Give Up's victory has boosted confidence in China's ability to win at major international e-sports events.

    E-sports' popularity has ballooned in recent years, with the International Olympic Committee scheduled to meet in July to further discuss the possibility of including e-sports in future Olympic Games. According to Penguin Intelligence's 2017 China Game Industry Report, released in June, the annual market value of China's e-sports sector reached 20 billion yuan ($3.13 billion) in 2016, generated by gamers' spending, copyright distribution, merchandising and e-commerce. The number of registered online gamers jumped to 220 million in 2017 from 170 million the year before.

    Palaces are known for their beauty and splendor, but they offer little protection against attacks. It is easy to defend a large building, but usually these buildings are not designed with the comfort of a king in mind. When it comes to structures that are both beautiful and defensive, the European castle is a big success.

    Castles were originally built in England by the Normans in 1066. They built towers and walls to secure the land they had taken. These castles provided the Normans with a quiet and safe place. They also served as bases of operation for attacks. In this way castles served both defensive and offensive roles. Besides, castles served as offices for governors. Those that were socially beneath the governor would come to report affairs and express their respect. They would address problems, handle business, feast, and enjoy festivities in castles. So castles served as social centers as well.

    The first castles were made from earth and wood, and they were likely to suffer from attacks by fire. Then wooden castles were gradually replaced by stone, which greatly increased the strength of these towers and walls. However, attackers could throw flaming objects into castles through the windows or burn the wooden doors. This led to moving the windows and entrances off of the ground floor and up to the first floor to make them more difficult to access.

    During the Middle Ages, attacks increased in regularity, so castle defenses were updated. Arrow-slits were added. They were small holes in the castle, which allowed defenders to fire without being hurt. Towers were built from which defenders could provide fire on both sides. The towers were connected to the castle by wooden bridges, so that if one tower fell, the rest of the castle was still easy to defend. A lot of rings of castle walls were constructed, so that even if attackers went past one wall, they would be caught on a killing ground between inner and outer walls. All of these increased the defense of castles.

    The end of castles can be attributed to gunpowder. During the 15th century, artillery, a kind of large guns, became powerful enough to break through stone walls. This greatly made the role of castles less effective. Though castles no longer serve their original purposes, remaining castles receive millions of visitors each year who wish to experience the situations of ancient times.

    At least 20 people died and hundreds were injured in a bridge collapse in the eastern Indian city of Kolkata Thursday. Witnesses said many people and vehicles, including two buses carrying more than 100 passengers, were under the bridge when it fell. They also said construction workers had set up camps near the bridge site where they would sleep and cook.

    Before rescue teams arrived, local residents and firefighters used their bare hands to try to rescue people trapped under the debris. The collapsed bridge is in a busy commercial area of Kolkata. Its location has made it difficult for rescue operations. Access to the area is blocked on both sides by buildings, and the streets are blocked with heavy traffic.

    Reuters (路透社) reports that the Chief Minister of West Bengal, Mamata Banerjee, rushed to the scene of the collapse. She said that rescuing those trapped is her “top priority”. Banerjee said those responsible for the disaster will be punished. Yet she faces questions about the safety of the construction project. The Telegraph newspaper reported last November that Banerjee wanted the bridge — already five years overdue — to be completed by February. Project engineers said they were concerned over whether this would be possible, the newspaper said at the time. Construction workers had been on a strict schedule to complete the bridge. The disaster could affect the West Bengal election next month. An Indian company, IVRCL, was building the 2­kilometer bridge, its website said. IVRCL's director of operations said the company was not sure of the cause of the disaster.

How Do People Plan Their Life?

    The story of King Midas is not true. No man could really touch the things around him and make them turn to gold. It could be wonderful if we could turn things into gold as in the story. But the "magic touch" the life without work is seldom part of life in an everyday world.

    It costs money to do the things you want to do and to buy the things you want to buy. In order to give a present for a birthday you must first earn the money before you have any to spend. Your home your food and your clothes are basic needs. Everyone needs these three things. Many other things we want are really luxuries. Basic needs and luxuries together form our standard(标准)of living. Many of the things we feel we "need" in our homes would be regarded as luxuries to other people in other parts of the world.

    Have you ever helped plan a family budget(预算)?If you know you have to balance the whole money the family have earned you should pay for gas electricity water and your house. You should also plan for holidays and other special uses. At the same time you should have some of your money to be saved.

    How people earn their money and how they spend their money is an important aspect of the study of economics.