A dog, it is said, is a man's best friend. Put a dog, a kid and a book together, and you have a struggling reader's best friend.

    The therapy dogs of R.E.A.D. – Reading Education Assistance Dogs – have been helping children improve their reading skills since 1999, when Intermountain Therapy Animals (ITA) began the program in Salt Lake City, Utah.

    Today, tens of thousands of R.E.A.D. teams – dogs and their owners – volunteer to spend time with youngsters in schools and libraries across the United States and around the world. The idea is that sharing a book with a nonjudgmental (不带评论的) partner encourages students' confidence and helps develop a love of reading.

    Izzy, a Havanese therapy dog, is a regular visitor to Public School 57 in East Harlem, New York. Students meet him in the library, pick out a book and sit down on the carpet. Izzy snuggles (依偎) up to them and gets ready to hear a story.

    “I love reading to Izzy because he listens to me, and he doesn't make fun of me when I make a mistake,” says third-grader Aelane Vasquez. The 9-year-old, whose parents are from Mexico, is one of 15 Latin-American students at the school who were selected for the program.

    “All the students that we work with in the R.E.A.D. program were behind reading levels at the beginning of the year,” Bridget McElroy, who teaches English as a Second Language, explained. “Now most of them have reached the average level, if not above it.” That's important, because achieving proficiency (熟练) in reading is vital for kids to succeed. Studies have shown that students who can't read at grade level by the end of third grade are four times less likely to graduate high school by the age of 19.

    The R.E.A.D. teams from New York Therapy Animals work with 175 kids at Public School 57 and nine other schools.

    McElroy said she sees a marked difference in Aelane and her classmates, and not just in study. “Not only do the kids have time to practice reading, what we are really seeing is that they are excited to read and practice even when Izzy is not here,” she said.

    Before coming to France, I always thought that French people wear formal clothes. But, when I arrived in Paris, I came to know why France could remain the lead in world fashion and Paris could attract so many designers (设计师) from all over the world to come.

    On the boulevard of Champs-elysees, there are many fashion shops of famous brands, such as Chanel, Dior, Pierre Cardin. In daily life, however, most of Parisians never wear clothes like those on the super models. On the opposite (相反), I found people in Paris often dress in very simple designs and usually in dark.

    Such situation doesn't affect French designers to create more and more new styles. But I would say people in Paris dress more formally than those in the rest of France. In other French cities, what people wear are usually casual (休闲) dresses, such as T-shirts and jeans.

    French people act as the fashion leaders, but they accept other clothes styles as well. Montpellier, the city I live in, is in southern France near the Mediterranean Sea. Here are many immigrants (移民) from Algeria, Morocco and other African countries. The Arabian and African cultures are influential (有影响的) in this city. Therefore, you can find a lot of young people dress in the North African style.

    Chester is one of the best cities in the UK. As soon as you arrive in Chester you will appreciate the city's unique atmosphere and sense his history. Founded by the Romans over 2,000 years ago, much of the Roman influence remains and Chester's city walls are the most complete in Britain. Combined with history and heritage (遗产), Chester is a lively city full of bars, pubs, clubs, hotels, and restaurants for you to discover, attracting you to visit again and again.

    Travelling to Chester

    Chester is easily accessible by many means of transport—whether you are travelling by rail, car, bus or plane. Please check our route planner below to help you plan your journey to Chester. Once you arrive in the city there are numerous car parks; however, during rush hours the easiest way to travel is by bus.

    Hotel

    From bed & breakfast to the luxury of Chester's only five star hotel, Chester has all covered. Whether your trip is for business or pleasure, your room is just a click away!

    Sightseeing and Tours

    The best way to see Chester is by a guided tour. If you join one, you still have a variety to choose from. Whether you choose the traditional guided walk, to be guided around Chester historical landmarks by bus or to take a boat down the River Dee, you will sure enjoy the delights of Chester.

Last year, the Bureau of Labor Statistics reported that 55 million people in the U. S. are "gig workers" which is more than 35 percent of the U. S. workforce. That number is projected to jump to 43 percent by 2020.

People are drawn to gig work（零工）because it brings in a little extra income without a major time commitment. And recent technologies like Skype, Slack, and Dropbox have made the gig life a reality, giving you maximum freedom, an ideal work-life balance, and the chance to pursue your passions.

If you're thinking of joining the gig economy, it's never been easier. One of the great things about the gig economy is that you don't have a boss breathing down your neck. As a freelancer, you no longer have to cater to a company culture or work schedule that might cause physical or emotional stress. Instead, you get to choose the type of work you do and who you work with. But this degree of freedom requires a corresponding amount of discipline. With no boss to make sure you're on task, it's all on you.

A lot of gig workers start their careers by hopping on a project because the employer is desperate and in need of help. On the employer's end, it's tough to take on people for higher management positions when the pool of talent is full of gig workers who haven't been given an opportunity to improve their skills. Businesses have to evolve to learn how to account for an influx (涌入) of temporary workers. It is harder for gig workers to become skilled and get promoted.

The workforce is becoming more advanced and educated by the day. You have to keep learning and keep up with industry trends to maintain a competitive edge. This is true even for people in traditional office settings, but it's critical if you're your own boss.

The rejuvenating effects of a restorative nocturnal repose are widely recognized; it can engender a state of enhanced well-being. Academics in the field posit that the excellence of one's slumber may indeed be instrumental in the prolongation of one's lifespan.

Male subjects who enjoy a state of somnolent tranquility could potentially extend their existence by a span of nearly five decades in comparison to those bereft of such repose. The female counterparts stand to gain an increment of two decades. Additionally, it has been observed that youthful individuals who adhere to salutary somniferous routines are less susceptible to a premature demise. However, the mere quantity of repose is insufficient to reap the potential healthful dividends; the caliber of one's slumber is equally pivotal.

The parameters of commendable slumber were delineated by a quintet of distinct criteria. These encompassed an optimal duration of seven to eight hours of repose per nocturnal cycle; experiencing difficulty in the initiation of sleep no more than twice per hebdomadal period; similar challenges in maintaining somnolence no more than twice weekly; abstaining from the consumption of any soporific pharmaceuticals; and awakening with a sensation of invigoration on no fewer than five days per septenary cycle.

The conclusions derived from the study intimate that approximately 8% of fatalities, irrespective of their etiology, could be imputed to inadequate somniferous patterns. Dr. Frank Qian, a resident physician specializing in internal medicine at the Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center in Boston, America, remarked, "A distinct proportional response relationship was discerned. Consequently, an increase in the beneficial elements pertaining to the quality of sleep correlates with a progressive diminution in mortality from all causes."

The research collated data from a populace of 172,321 individuals with an average age of 50, of which 54% were female. These participants were engaged in the National Health Interview Survey, spanning the years 2013 to 2018, which sought to scrutinize the well-being of the American populace, inclusive of inquiries into their somniferous habits.

The subjects were tracked for a mean period of 4.3 years, during which 8,681 succumbed to death. Of these fatalities, 2,610 (30%) were attributable to cardiovascular afflictions, 2,052 (24%) to oncological disorders, and 4,019 (46%) to a miscellany of other causes. Among the male and female participants who reported adherence to all five indices of quality sleep (an optimal quintile score), the expectancy of life was augmented by 4.7 years for males and by 2.4% for females, in contradistinction to those who possessed none or a solitary factor.

Further scholarly endeavor is warranted to elucidate the raison d'être for the dichotomy in the enhancement of life expectancy, with males exhibiting twice the increment observed in females despite equivalent somniferous quality.

A caveat of the study lies in the reliance on self-reported somniferous habits, which were not subjected to objective quantification or verification.