How cool can libraries be in an era(时代) of iPods and Kindles? More than you think. Only if you know where to go.

Central Library: Seattle, Washington, United States

    The Central Library in Seattle is modern and fashionable and has tourists from around the world paying visits and taking tours. It was designed by Dutch architect Rem Koolhaas and American designer Joshua Prince-Ramus. Tours began in 2006, two years after its opening. The library holds various art exhibitions, book signings and other events, while visitors can stop by the Chocolati cat 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 in Ireland, founded in 1592 by Queen Elizabeth I. It is the largest single library in the world, also known as the Long Room, which contains more than 200,000 of the library's oldest books. The Long Room houses one of the oldest harps(竖琴) in Ireland. Dating to the 15^th century, the old harp is the model for the symbol of Ireland.

Geisel Library, University of California: San Diego, United States

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

TU Delft Library: The Netherlands

    The library at the Delft University of Technology was constructed in 1997 and has more than 862,000 books, 16,000 magazine subscriptions and its own museum. The building itself 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 covers 5,500 square meters. And it has become one of the most striking and greenest structures in the area.

    Navajo was the perfect choice for a secret language. It is very complex. One vowel (元音）can have up to ten different pronunciations, changing the meaning of any word. In the 1940s, Navajo was unwritten language. No one outside of the reservation could speak it or understand it.

    The Navajo Code team had to invent new words to describe military equipment. For example, they named ships after fish: lotso-whale (battleship), calo-shark (destroyer), beshloiron-fish (submarine). When a Code Talker received a message via radio, he heard a series of unrelated Navajo words. He would then translate the words into English and use the first letter of each English word to spell the message. The Navajo words tsah (needle), wol-la-chee (ant), ah-kh-di-glini (victor), and tsah-ah-dzoh (yucca) spelled NAVY.

    The Code Talker kept the code a secret. They memorized everything. There were no code books. As a result, no ordinary Navajo soldiers, if captured by the enemy, could understand the code. More than 3,600 Navajos served in World War II, but only 420 were Code Talkers with the US Marines. They coded and decoded battlefield messages better and faster than any machine. They could encode, transmit, and decode a three-line English message in 20 seconds. Machines of the time required 30 minutes to perform the same job.

    Even after the war the code remained top secret. When they were asked about their role, Code Talkers just said: “I was a radioman.” War movies and histories came out without mentioning them. The code was never used again and was finally declassified in 1968. Only then did the secret came out.

    ARNOLD Schwarzenegger is back, once again taking on his iconic killer robot role, the T-800, in August's new movie Terminator Genisys. While the T-800 model—even if it can be evil—has a fond place in moviegoers' hearts, the reality of autonomous machines is no joke, according to scientists.

    Autonomous weapons use artificial intelligence (AI) to choose targets without human help. They were described as “the third revolution in warfare, after gunpowder and nuclear arms” in an open letter signed by over 1,000 important technology figures in July. The list included British scientist Stephen Hawking and Apple co-founder Steve Wozniak. They asked governments around the world to ban autonomous weapons, warning that killer robots could start ethnic cleansings and an arms race.

     “They will look like tanks. They will look like battleships. They will look like jet fighters,” UK robotics professor Noel Sharkey told CNET, a leading technology website.

    But unlike these machines, which require a human hand in their action, so-called “killer robots” would have some decision-making abilities and the ability to act on their own.

     “If any major military power pushes ahead with AI weapon development, a global arms race is almost inevitable,” said the letter released at the 2015 International Joint Conference on Artificial Intelligence in Buenos Aires, Argentina.

    The idea of an automated killing machine was made famous by Schwarzenegger's first Terminator movie in 1984. While no red-eyed robots have been sent after human beings, the idea of AI being used as a weapon has gotten much more likely in the years ever since. The US military is already developing autonomous flying vehicles that can carry out all the steps of a strike mission without a human controlling them, according to a May report in Nature magazine.

    Scientists have even painted a destructive picture of autonomous weapons falling into the hands of terrorists or warlords hoping to carry out ethnic cleansings.

     “The development of full artificial intelligence could lead to the end of the human race,” Hawking said to the BBC in 2016.

Authorities are gradually waking up to the risk of robot wars. Last May, for the first time, the United Nations brought governments together to begin talks on autonomous weapons systems.

    Still, a ban on autonomous weapons is “easier said than done”, commented The Guardian. The dual (双重的) uses of the AI technology—for harm and for good—is difficult to manage. This is because the exact same technology can be used in a wide range of ways, the paper said.

    Angad Rekhi, a graduate student and an assistant professor of electrical engineering, has developed a wake-up receiver. This wake-up receiver has many potential applications, particularly in designing the next generation of net worked devices, including so called "smart" devices that can communicate directly with one another without human intervention (介入).

    Once attached to a device, a wake-up receiver listens for a unique ultrasonic（超声波）pattern that tells it when to turn the device on. It needs only a very small amount of power to maintain this constant listening, so it still saves energy overall while extending the battery life of the larger device. A well-designed wake-up receiver also allows the device to be turned on from a significant distance.

    Given the increased interest in networked devices, researchers and industry organizations are starting to define what features and techniques will become standard. Regardless of whether this ultrasound wake-up receiver is among these standard designs, it is likely wake-up receivers of some kind will be combined into commercial applications soon.

    By comparison, the ultrasound wake-up receiver requires a battery but has much greater range than the wirelessly powered devices, while still maintaining a long lifetime due to extremely low power draw. These two technologies-wireless power and wake-up receivers-would likely serve different purposes but both indicate at a turning point in devices that make up the Internet of Things.

    "In light of a long-promised future where interconnected, autonomous, widespread and unremarkable technologies make life easier, the networked devices available now, like video doorbells and app-enabled lights, seem like rather slight advances." the researchers said. They believe technologies like theirs could help cross the gap between the Internet of Things as we know it and the Internet of Things at its best-whatever that may be.

    72-year-old Darlene Mullins recently graduated from Tennessee State University in Nashville, Tennessee. Darlene left school nearly 55 years ago in the name of love. She was studying at the college and met her husband-to-be, John Mullins, in 1962. The two knew they would marry each other the moment they met. She finished her freshman year with 25 credits and married John in 1963. Her husband graduated in 1964 and began working.

    Darlene took care of the household and was a stay-at-home mother to their son and daughter. The family lived in six states over the years, due to John's successful career in business. Darlene eventually began a career in retail as their children grew older. Though she remained busy, she always longed to finish school. She always told her children to make sure they finish what they started and she kind of felt it was time to live up to her own dream.

    John was very supportive when she told him she was going back to school. He knew the day would come when she decided to finish her degree. He told her whenever she was ready they would go. The couple moved back to Nashville in 2013 when Darlene re-enrolled. She had to adjust to the technological advances in the classroom, saying that she was determined to finish no matter how long it took. After completing four years, Darlene graduated with a degree, “I feel like God has given me a second chance.” she said' She hopes that her story can inspire others to pursue a degree.

    On Wednesday, January 13th, I performed on stage for the first time. As someone who takes part in so many activities, it's extremely difficult to find the time to be a part of any production. For me, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to try acting through the Senior Play Project.

    Auditions (试镜)came first. They weren't particularly difficult, more to see who may be a better fit tor certain roles. We were told our roles in the various plays, and started to work immediately.

    I was unsure of how I was as an actor, and I had to learn a lot fast: actions, my place in the story, my reactions, and countless other small details... As I began to improve as an actor, I was able to understand my characters better.

    My first character is a man named Roger who is a senior advisor to a presidential candidate in a play called "The Spot." He's a short-tempered guy who says what he wants and takes what he wants to assist his candidate in today's tough political races. He's on the set of The Spot, an advertisement for the candidate, to make sure everything runs smoothly and that any problems are dealt with quickly and efficiently.

    While I had really interesting characters, and the plays were funny and such a great experience to act in, I really love the Senior Play Project for the people. I worked with 12 other seniors who not only loved what they were doing, but offered help and advice throughout my entire learning process.

    Between the lights, sounds, costume and makeup, and plenty more, theatre is a team sport just like basketball or baseball. There are no small parts; there is no one who isn't needed. I've learned to appreciate live theatre, and the effort that every person in the show, both onstage and offstage, puts into it.