Some people think if you are happy, you are blind to reality. But when we research it, happiness actually raises every single business and educational outcome for the brain. How did we miss this? Why do we have these social misunderstandings about happiness? Because we assumed you were average. When we study people, scientists are often interested in what the average is.

    Many people think happiness is genetic. That's only half the story, because the average person does not fight their genes. When we stop studying the average and begin researching positive outliers —people who are above average for a positive aspect like optimism or intelligence —a wildly different picture appears. Our daily decisions and habits have a huge impact upon both our levels of happiness and success.

    Scientifically, happiness is a choice. It is a choice about where your single processor brain will devote its limited resources as you process the world. If you scan for the negative first, your brain really has no resources left over to see the things you are grateful for or the meaning embedded(嵌入) in your work. But if you scan the world for the positive, you start to acquire an amazing advantage.

    I wrote the cover story for the Harvard Business Review magazine on “Happiness Leads to Profits.” Based on my article called “Positive Intelligence” and my research in The Happiness Advantage, I summarized our researched conclusion: the single greatest advantage in the modern economy is a happy and busy workforce.

    A decade of research in the business world proves that happiness raises nearly every business and educational outcome: increasing sales by 37%, productivity by 31%, and accuracy on tasks by 19%, as well as a number of health and quality-of-life improvements.

    Which boy hasn't dreamed of being a cool secret agent? The wonderful fighting abilities and the world-saving adventures are much more colourful than most people's everyday lives. Well, Cody Banks is just like any other boy, except that he is not just dreaming. He has a big secret his friends never know about. He was trained to be a spy by a special CIA programme, which was made to look like a summer camp. He learned high-speed driving, hand-to-hand fighting and the use of high-tech tools.

    After proving he could become a young hero by saving a baby from a runaway car, Banks gets his first real task. He must make friends with a popular girl at school, Natalie Connors. Then, he must spy on her father, a scientist who has developed a dangerous technology. Banks must stop a group of bad people from forcing Natalie's father into using the technology to endanger the world.

    The CIA may have taught him first-class self-defence moves, but they didn't show him how to talk to girls. Banks has zero ability when it comes to dealing with girls. How can he get around his problem and get an invitation to the girl's upcoming birthday party? Will he finally become Natalie's boyfriend and find out whatever he can about her father's work?

    Agent Cody Banks has everything that young people are interested in: big explosions, breath-taking performances and funny girl-dating experiences. It was listed No.2 in the American box office last week.

    “This story is interesting and fun for the whole family to enjoy, and especially cool for young boys,” said Paul Perkins, a film reviewer in the US.

    Experts like to say the best form of exercise is whatever kind you'll actually do. But that may not always be the case; new research finds that people who combine exercise with their social lives may be at an advantage over solitary（独自） exercisers. Tennis, badminton and soccer are all better for longevity(长寿) than cycling, swimming, jogging or gym exercise, according to the research.

    The study was based on data from about 8,500 adults who were part of the Copenhagen City Heart Study. They completed a health and lifestyle questionnaire, which included questions about type and frequency of physical activity, and were monitored by the researchers for around 25 years, a period during which about 4,500 of the subjects died.

    Tennis came out on top in the research. Compared with people sitting all day, those who reported playing tennis as their main form of exercise could expect to add 9.7 years to their life time, followed by badminton (6.2 years), soccer (4.7 years), cycling (3.7 years), swimming (3.4 years), jogging (3.2 years) and health-club activities (1.5 years).

    Tennis likely took the top spot because "it's very interactive," says study co-author Dr. James O'Keefe, a physician at Saint Luke's Mid America Heart Institute. "At every point you're talking. It's just a very natural way to emotionally bond with people, besides getting your exercise." But he adds that the study may not have been able to fully account for the fact that wealthier, better-educated people—who tend to be healthier to begin with—may be more likely to play tennis.

    Activities like running and weight lifting still extend your life and offer plenty of other health benefits. But for the best possible benefits, O'Keefe says gym-goers may want to consider combining those workouts with activities that foster social connection.

    O'Keefe, whose exercise typically includes running and weight lifting, says he's even changed his own behavior because of the study: he and his family have taken up badminton.

    "You can't play badminton without feeling like a kid again," he says. "It's just pure fun."

    A large body of research has been developed in recent years to explain many aspects of willpower. Most of the researchers exploring self-control do so with an obvious goal in mind: How can willpower be strengthened? If willpower is truly a limited resource, as the research suggests, what can be done to make it stay strong?

    Avoiding temptation (诱惑) is an effective method for maintaining self-control, which is called the "out of sight, out of mind" principle. One recent study, for instance, found office workers less attracted to candy in the desk drawer than that on top of their desks, in plain sight.

    The research suggesting that we possess a limited reservoir of self-control raises a troubling question. When we face too many temptations, are we to fail? Not necessarily. Researchers don't believe that one's willpower is ever completely exhausted. Rather, people appear to hold some willpower in reserve, saved for future demands. The right motivation allows us to tap into those reserves, allowing us to carry on even when our self-control strength has been run down. High motivation might help overcome weakened willpower-at least to a point.

    Willpower may also be made less vulnerable (脆弱) to being exhausted in the first place.

    Researchers who study self-control often describe it as being like a muscle that gets tired with heavy use. But there is another aspect to the muscle comparison, they say. While muscles become exhausted by exercise in the short term, they are strengthened by regular exercise in the long term. Similarly, regular practices of self-control may improve willpower strength.

    The evidence from willpower-exhaustion studies also suggests that making a list of resolutions on New Year's Eve is the worst possible approach. Being exhausted in one area can reduce willpower in other areas, so it makes more sense to focus on a single goal at a time. In other words, don't try to quit smoking, adopt a healthy diet and start a new exercise plan at the same time. Taking goals one by one is a better approach. Once a good habit is in place, Baumeister says, you'll no longer need to draw on your willpower to maintain the behavior. Eventually healthy habits will become routine, and won't require making decisions at all.

Smart Cameras to Help You Take Better Photos

    Google Clips

    One of the latest to launch is Google Clips. It is designed to be put somewhere in a room to take pictures by itself. It can also be attached to an object or a person's clothing.

    Google says machine learning helps the camera choose the best times and situations for taking pictures and videos. Interested buyers can join a waiting list to be informed when it is on the market.

    GoPro Hero

    GoPro also uses machine learning to power its QuikStories characteristic. This tool takes existing photos and videos and automatically creates a finished video piece, complete with music and effects.

    Snap Spectacles

    Messaging app Snapchat sells a pair of sunglasses with a built-in camera that can record short videos with the push of a button. Snap Inc. says the product, called Spectacles, is designed to "catch the moment, without taking you out of it."

    The glasses can record short video clips that can be shared with Snapchat users. Snap Inc. has started selling its Spectacles sunglasses online in the United States.

    Apple iPhone X

    Apple's new iPhone X is being launched with its new Face ID system that it says will unlock the phone just by having the user look at it. This replaces the Touch ID on previous ones that used a fingerprint to unlock the phone.

    Apple says the system works by projecting more than 30,000 dots on the face to create a kind of map. Apple says its facial recognition is even secure enough to allow payments through its Apple Pay service.

    Jacob's Pillow Dance Festival

    Where: Becket, Massachusetts

When: Jun.15—Aug.24

    Each summer, this influential dance center presents a number of classes and performances by more than 50 companies from around the world. Highlights (最精彩的部分) in this season include the Dance Theater of Harlem's production of Alvin Ailey's "The Lark Ascending", which opens the festival.

    Many events are free. Ticketed performances start at $22. Jacobspillow.org.

    Moab Music Festival

    Where: Moab, Utah

When: Aug.29—Sept.9

    This area is better known for mountain biking than for music. But since 1992, it has hosted a private festival that brings classical, jazz, Latin and other types of music to the land. This year there will be 16 concerts, including three "Grotto Concerts", where guests take a 45-minute boat ride down the Colorado River to performances.

    Events start at $25. moabmusicfest.org.

    Cheyenne Frontier Days

    Where: Cheyenne, Wyoming

When: July19—28

    There is something for everyone at this 117-year-old festival, from an "Indian village and Old West museum" to country concerts. But the competition is still the main attraction, with cowboys and cowgirls competing for major money in the world's largest outdoor stage.

    Competition tickets start at $18, and concert tickets at $23. cfdrodeo.com.

    The Glimmerglass Festival

    Where: Cooperstown, New York

When: July6—Aug.24

    Each summer, opera lovers from around the country (and the world) travel to upstate New York to watch productions that include stars like Nathan Gunn and Ginger Costa-Jackson. This year's performances include Wagner's "The Flying Dutchman" and Verdi's "King for a Day", in honor of the 200th birthdays of both composers(作曲家).

    Tickets start at $26. glimmerglass.org.