Easy Ways to Keep Your Brain Sharp

    Everyone is forgetful, but as we age, we start to feel like our brains are slowing down a bit — and that can be a very annoying thing. {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Read on for some techniques worth trying.

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    People who regularly made plans and looked forward to upcoming events had a 50 percent reduced chance of Alzheimer's disease (早老性痴呆症), according to a recent study. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Something as simple as setting a goal to have a weekly coffee date with a friend will do. There's evidence that people who have a purpose in life or who are working on long or short-term goals appear to do better. In other words, keep your brain looking forward.

    ⒉ Go for a walk.

    Mildly raised glucose (葡萄糖) levels can harm the area of the brain that helps you form memories and physical activity can help get blood glucose down to normal levels. In fact, exercise produces chemicals that are good for your brain. {#blank#}4{#/blank#}

    ⒊ Learn something new.

    Take a Spanish class online, join a drawing club, or learn to play cards. A study found that mental stimulation (刺激) limits the weakening effects of aging on memory and the mind. But the best thing for your brain is when you learn something new and are physically active at the same time. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Or go dancing with your friends.

A. Focus on the future.

B. This can be especially harmful to the aged.

C. It should be something like learning gardening.

D. So take a few minutes each day to do some reading.

E. But don't worry if your schedule isn't filled with life-changing events.

F. Luckily, research shows there is a lot you can do to avoid those moments.

G. In other words, when you take care of your body, you take care of your brain.

    If you have a taste for the USA and time and money are in short supply, our range of Mini Adventures are just the ticket for experiencing North America's most incredible parts in just a few days.

    These 3- and 4- day tours get you out of the city and off the beaten path in a flash, making the most of your time and money. From the thundering Niagara Falls and the magnificent Grand Canyon to the most iconic landscape in America, Monument Valley, our Mini Adventures serve up a huge helping of American pie!

Vegas to Grand Canyon

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USA West-Camping

Cowboys, canyons and Indians — Need we say more? Explore Zion & Bryce Canyon National Parks before a night with the Navajo people deep in the heart of Monument Valley, then top it all off with the grandest canyon on earth!

Los Angeles to Grand Canyon

4 days from Los Angeles

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USA West-Camping

    Escape the hustle and bustle of Los Angles for some Desert Southwest action! Travel from Lake Havasu to the Grand Canyon, then along the iconic Route66, over the Hoover Dam and into Las Vegas for an included limousine tour that you'll never forget!

San Francisco to Yosemite

3 days from San Francisco

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USA West-Camping

    Cross the Sierra Nevada Mountains for the crystal clear waters of Lake Tahoe and on to Yosemite Valley for a full day of exploration. Spectacular views, adventurous activities and abundant wildlife awaits you on this amazing short break in Western USA.

New York to Niagara Falls

3 days from New York

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USA East-Hotel

    Leave city life behind in New York and venture deep into ‘up state' New York to the thundering wonder of incomparable Niagara Falls before a night in the Finger Lakes with the waterfalls and Wineries as your neighbors.

    I had worried myself sick over Simon's mother coming to see me.I was a new teacher,and I gave an honest account of the students' work.In Simon's case,the grades were awfully low.He couldn't read his own handwriting.But he was a bright student.He discussed adult subjects with nearly adult comprehension.His work in no way reflected his abilities.

    So when Simon's mother entered the room.my palms（手掌心）were sweating.I was completely unprepared for her kisses on both my cheeks."I came to thank you,"she said,surprising me beyond speech.Because of me,Simon had become a different person.He talked of how he loved me,he had begun to make friends,and for the first time in his twelve years,he had recently spent an afternoon at a friend's house.She wanted to tell me how grateful she was for the self-respect I had developed in her son.She kissed me again and left.

    I sat,stunned,for about half an hour,wondering what had just happened.How did I make such a life-changing difference to that boy without even knowing it?What I finally came to remember was one day,several months before, when some students were giving reports in the front of the class,Jeanne spoke quietly,and to encourage her to raise her voice,I had said,"Speak up.Simon is the expert on this.He is the only one you have to convince,and he can't hear you in the back of the room."That was it.From that day on,Simon had sat up straighter,paid more attention,smiled more,and became happy.And it was all because he happened to be the last kid in the last row.The boy who most needed praise was the one who took the last seat that day.

    It taught me the most valuable lesson over the years of my teaching career,and I'm thankful that it came early and positively.A small kindness can indeed make a difference.

    Being seen in a fancy sports car or enjoying a beach holiday in a five-star hotel were once signs of having “made it”.

    But a new study suggested that having people think of you as constantly busy and overworked is now a far better way to show social status.

    According to Harvard University in the US, people are increasingly leaning toward the phenomenon of “humblebragging (谦虚自夸)”. This is when people make a seemingly modest statement that actually draws attention to something they want to brag (吹嘘) about.

    Phrases such as “I have no life” and “I desperately need a holiday” are now used to imply social standing, while ordering food and shopping online is the perfect way to prove to neighbors that you are simply too busy and important to go to the supermarket.

    “Movies, magazines, and popular TV shows often highlight (强调) the abundance (富足) of money and leisure time among the wealthy,” said Neeru Paharia, an assistant professor at Harvard University.

    “In recent years, featuring wealthy people relaxing by the pool or on a yacht (游艇), playing tennis or skiing and hunting are being replaced with advertisements featuring busy individuals who work long hours and have very limited leisure time,” he said. “Displaying (how busy you are at work) and a lack of leisure time operates as a visible signal of status in the eyes of others.”

    The researchers pointed out that the Wall Street Journal's 2016 advert campaign featured celebrities (名人) complaining about their busy lives, with the slogan (标语). “People who don't have time, make time to read the Wall Street Journal.”

    The report, which was published in the Journal of Consumer Research, also found that brands that marketed themselves as timesaving were becoming increasingly high-status, because of the people who used them.

    According to the authors, this trend of humblebragging is due to people's shit of focus-they now value “the preciousness und scarcity (稀缺) of individuals" more than “the preciousness and scarcity of goods”.

    “Busy individuals possess desirable characteristics, leading them to be viewed as scarce and in demand,” the authors concluded.

    Have you been told you have penicillin allergy? Did your parents tell you that you had a reaction as an infant or child, so you should never take it again? Has it been so long since you had a reaction to penicillin that you don't remember what happened? If you fit any of these descriptions or are just not sure if you have penicillin allergy, there's good news for you: Chances are, you probably don't have it.

    Between 10 to 20 percent of Americans believe they have a penicillin allergy, but a recent study at Mayo Clinic found that only 10 percent of those people are truly penicillin allergic. In other words, 9 out of 10 people who think they have penicillin allergy are avoiding it for no reason. Even in people with documented allergy to penicillin, only about 20 percent are still allergic 10 years after their initial allergic reaction. It's not necessarily a permanent condition.

    Why is this important? Aren't there many other antibiotics you can use if you have penicillin allergy? Penicillin has been around since 1928. Penicillin and its related medicines include amoxicillin, methicillin and amoxicillin-clavulnate. These medicines are highly effective treatments for many bacterial infections, such as strep throat and ear infections. Of course, there are alternative antibiotics, but these are often much more expensive and carry a higher risk of side effects. Typically, these alternative antibiotics are broad-spectrum, meaning they fight many types of bacteria, both good and bad. That can lead to development of drug-resistant bacteria, or deadly “superbugs”. This increases the risk for all of us in the future of not having an effective antibiotic to treat our infection.

    How do you find out if you have penicillin allergy? Board-certified allergists can test you. First, the allergist will get a history from you about your possible allergy. Typical questions include: How long ago did you have the reaction? What type of reaction occurred, and how soon after you took the penicillin did the reaction appear? The testing is done on the forearm by pricking the skin with a needle. If the results are negative and there is no reaction, penicillin will be injected in the skin. These tests are not painful, and results are available in 15 minutes. A positive reaction may lead to some swelling and itching where the test was placed, which usually goes away within an hour.

    In very rare cases, an allergic reaction occurs. This can include hives, swelling, wheezing and/or difficulty breathing. The allergist is trained to treat this rare condition quickly if it happens. If all skin testing is negative, you may be given an oral dose of penicillin in the office. The oral drug challenge is used to verify that you don't have penicillin allergy. Usually, you'll be observed in the office for 30 minutes to make sure you have no problems.

    If you find out you don't have a penicillin allergy, notify your physicians that it's now safe for you to take penicillin. They can take “penicillin allergy” off your chart for good!

    In 1941, science fiction writer Isaac Asimov stated the Three Laws of Robotics. These laws come from the world of science fiction, but the real world is catching up. A law firm gave Pittsburgh's Carnegie Mellon University $10 million to explore artificial intelligence. Peter Kalis, chairman of the law firm, K&L Gates, said the development of technology had led to questions that were never taken seriously before. What will happen when you make robots that are smart, independent thinkers and then try to limit their freedom?

    Researcher Kalis said, “One expert said we'll be at a point when we give an instruction to our robot to go to work in the morning and it turns around and says, 'I'd rather go to the beach.'” He said that one day we would want laws to keep our free-thinking robots from running wild.

    With the law firm's gift, the university will be able to explore problems now appearing within automated industries. “Take driverless cars for example,” Kalis said. “If there's an accident concerned with a driverless car, what policies do we have in place? What kind of insurance policies do they have?” In fact, people can take a ride in a driverless car in Pittsburgh where an American online transportation network company uses the city as a testing ground for the company's driverless cars.

    The problems go beyond self-driving cars and robots. Think about the next generation of smartphones, those chips fixed in televisions, computers, fridges, etc., and the ever-expanding collection of personal data being stored in the “cloud”. So can Asimov's Three Laws of Robotics be used in reality? Is it necessary to have a moral guideline that everyone can understand? Whatever it is, doing no harm should be the very first one.