Traffic problems are an everyday concern in many cities，including Washington，DC．A growing number of Washingtonians are turning to bicycles to get to and from work．In fact，the number of commuters who use bicycles has doubled in the city since 2007．

    Ralph Buehler teaches urban planning at the Virginia Polytechnic Institute and State University，popularly known as Virginia Tech．He has written a book about urban biking，calledCity Cyclin . g．He says there is a reason why urban bike tiding is now becoming more popular．

    “Over the last 60 to 70 years，cities in America have adapted to the automobile．”

    “Most cities took advantage of the money coming for the interstate highway system，from the federal government，  starting in 1956．There was a 90 percent federal match(补贴)so the cities only had to put up 10％．It was very tempting．”

    In the years after World War Two，many Americans moved to suburban communities，just outside major cities．They decided to travel great distances to and from work in exchange for a home in the suburbs．Their cars became a symbol of freedom．

    But today，many people believe they can save money by living in the city．

    Greg Billing is with the Washington Area Bicyclist Association．“When a person makes a change from using a car to using a bike，he／she is saving anywhere between 8 or $9，000 a year．”

    Ralph Buehler says governments save money when people use bicycles．“Building bicycling facilities is much cheaper than building and maintaining road facilities or public transport．”

    Washington，DC has also taken steps to protect bike riders．It approved a safe passing law and created areas on the road between cars and bikes．

    The United States Census Bureau says 4％of the city's workers ride to work by bike．The only city on the East Coast with more bike commuters is New York．

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    A beach town in the US state of New Jersey recently passed a ban on trousers, jeans and shorts that hang less than 3 inches below the hips(臀部) for an excuse of being unfriendly to others' eyes. But besides those low-hanging pants, here are some other items of popular travel clothing that may also need to be banned.

    Thai Fisherman Pants: These lightweight cotton pants, wide in the waist and originally designed for Thai fishermen, are popular among men and women due to their comfort, ability to last long and relative ease of wearing. But the bad news is that wearing these pants isn't the way to be respected in Bangkok.

    “Wearing them to wander around the town is considered 'low class' (even if we don't say it out loudly),” wrote a local Bangkok woman, who called herself “Beebah” on line. “It's better to dress ‘respectable' if you want to be treated well. Even a T-shirt and shorts are better than fisherman pants and tight sleeveless shirts. If you really love them, wear them at home.”

T-shirts with slogans: Wearing T-shirts with slogans in the local language on them may seem cool to some young tourists who are swept up in the excitement of being in a foreign country for the first time. But be careful as they could be some meaningless words and make you look really stupid. What's worse, some slogan T-shirts are political--you might get yourself into trouble without even knowing about it.

    Croce(洞洞鞋): Comfortable and easy to slip on and off, Crocs have been go-to-beach shoes for many tourists. But we must admit that these holey plastic shoes are deadly ugly in every way. “Supporters would hold that the comfort of the Crocs is over their looks, but Babyclothes are comfortable, too. Your don't feel the need to walk around in them, do you?” said a friend of mine.

    Temples have existed for thousands of years. They are the proof of cultures and civilization that existed many years ago.

    Gobekli Tepe, Turkey

    Located on a hilltop in southwestern Turkey where it snows a lot in winter, the Gobekli Tepe is considered the world's oldest temple. It is nearly 11,000 years old. There are carvings on the rock statues, mainly of lions, foxes, snakes, cranes and wild ducks, as well as scenes of people hunting. Because heavy snow makes it hard to get to the top of the hill, visitors are not recommended to go there in winters.

    White Temple, Thailand

    Immediately upon entering White Temple, you will realize this contemporary, unconventional temple stands out, even in a country dotted with temples. The White Temple is incredibly different and unique in its architecture, art and design. In fact, it is designed in a very modern way. This temple is all white. It is very hot in summer in Thailand, so going to White Temple in other three seasons is a wise choice.

    Sagrada Familia, Spain

    This symbolic Barcelona building is famously unfinished. It is said to be finished by 2026, but no body believes it. However, visitors believe its incompleteness is part of its charm, which sets it apart from other temples in the world. You will have to wait in a long line if you visit Sagrada Familia in summer holiday. Visitors are not that many in spring and winter.

    Kinkaku-ji, Japan

    This temple is absolutely the most popular one in Japan. Whether you visit during the fall when there are red leaves against the golden wall, in winter when the gold is topped with pure white snow, in spring with cherry blossoms, or in summer allowing you to smell the earthy smell after rain – there is never a bad time to visit this beautiful temple.

    A mother stared down at her son who was dying of terminal leukemia (白血病). Like any parent she wanted her son to grow up and realize all his dreams. She took her son's hand and asked, "Bopsy, did you ever think about what you wanted to be when you grew up?"

    "Mommy, I always wanted to be a fireman when I grew up."

    Mom smiled back and said, "Let's see if we can make your wish come true." Later that day she went to her local fire department in Phoenix, Arizona, where she met Fireman Bob. She explained her son's final wish and asked if it might be possible to give her six-year-old son a ride around the block on a fire engine. Fireman Bob said, "Look, we can do better than that. If you'll have your son ready at seven o'clock Wednesday morning, well make him an honorary fireman for the whole day, He can come down to the fire station; eat with us, go out on all the fire calls, the whole nine yards! And, if you'll give us his sizes, we'll get a real fire uniform made for him."

    Three days later Fireman Bob picked up Bopsy, dressed him in his fire uniform and escorted（护送）him from his hospital bed to the waiting hook and ladder truck. Bopsy got to sit up on the back of the truck and help steer it back to the fire station. He was in heaven.

    There were three fire calls in Phoenix that day and Bopsy got to go out on all three calls. He rode in the different fire engines and even the fire chief's car. Having his dream come true, with all the love and attention that was lavished（慷慨给予）upon him, Bopsy lived three months longer than any doctor thought possible.

    One night all of his vital signs began to drop and the head nurse began to call the family members to the hospital. Then she remembered the day Bopsy bad spent as a fireman, so she called the fire chief and asked if it would be possible to send a fireman in uniform to the hospital to be with Bopsy as he made his transition. The chief replied, "We can do better than that. We'll be there in five minutes. Will you please do me a favor? When you hear the sirens（警报器）screaming and see the lights flashing, will you announce over the PA system that it's just the fire department coming to see one of its finest members one more time? And will you open the window to his room? Thanks?"

    About five minutes later a hook and ladder truck arrived at the hospital, extended its ladder up to Bopsy's third floor open window and 14 firemen and two fire-women climbed up the ladder into Bopsy's room. With his mother's permission, they hugged him and held him and told him how much they loved him. With his dying breath, Bopsy looked up at the fire chief and said, "Chief, am I really a fireman now?"

    "Bopsy, you are," the chief said. With those words, Bopsy smiled and closed his eyes for the last time.

Benjamin West, the father of American painting, showed his talent for art when he was only six years of age. But he did not know about brushes before a visitor told him he needed one. In those days, a brush was made from camel's hair. There were no camels nearby. Benjamin decided that cat hair would work instead. He cut some fur from the family cat to make a brush.

The brush did not last long. Soon Benjamin needed more fur. Before long, the cat began to look ragged(蓬乱). His father said that the cat must be sick. Benjamin was forced to admit what he had been doing.

The cat's lot was about to improve. That year, one of Benjamin's cousins, Mr. Pennington, came to visit. He was impressed with Benjamin's drawings. When he went home, he sent Benjamin a box of paint and some brushes. He also sent six engravings (版画) by an artist. These were the first pictures and first real paint and brushes Benjamin had ever seen.

In 1747, when Benjamin was nine years old, Mr. Pennington returned for another visit. He was amazed at what Benjamin had done with his gift. He asked Benjamin's parents if he might take the boy back to Philadelphia for a visit.

In the city, Mr. Pennington gave Benjamin materials for creating oil paintings. The boy began a landscape (风景) painting. William Williams, a well-known painter, came to see him work. Williams was impressed with Benjamin and gave him two classic books on painting to take home. The books were long and dull. Benjamin could read only a little, having been a poor student. But he later said, "Those two books were my companions by day, and under my pillow at night." While it is likely that he understood very little of the books, they were his introduction to classical paintings. The nine-year-old boy decided then that he would be an artist.

Ida Nelson and her sister were relaxing and enjoying themselves in the sauna (桑拿室) when she heard a series of long low sounds from a small airplane circling the nearby airport.

It was 11:30 at night in the Alaskan village of Igiugig, population 70, and, as she told the reporter, "Any time a plane flies over that late, you know something is wrong."

Nelson and her sister leaped out of the sauna, ran to the window, and saw the problem: The airport's runway lights were out.

Nelson threw on some clothes, jumped into her ATV, and floored it to the airport, where she found a local pilot trying to turn on the lights manually.

"Normally, if you push the button 10 or 15 times, the lights will just light up," Nelson told KTOO out of Juneau. Not this time. Meanwhile, she and the pilot learned of the plane's urgent mission: It was a medevac (医疗救护直升机), there to transport a seriously ill local girl to the nearest hospital, 280 miles away in Anchorage.

Nelson had a plan. Driving her ATV to the end of the runway, she shone her headlights for the plane to follow. Great idea, but it wasn't enough. More light was needed, so a neighbor called nearly every home in the village—32 of them.

Within 20 minutes, 20 vehicles arrived at the airport, many of the drivers still in pajamas (睡衣). Following directions from the medevac pilot, the cars lined up on one side of the runway.

The medevac made its final approach and, guided by the headlights, landed safely. The young patient was loaded onto the aircraft, and the plane immediately took off again. Her illness was never publicly revealed, but she has since been released from the hospital.

In a world filled with uncertainty, the little community's positive activism was a big deal. Not so much for Nelson. As she told the reporter, in Igiugig, coming together "is kind of a normal deal."