Opened in 1847, the London Zoo is the world's oldest scientific zoo. Today it houses over 760 different species of animal and is the only zoo in London where you can experience big animals.

    Explore the “Into Africa” exhibit (展览) where you can come face to face with some of Africa's most unusual animals including hunting dogs, or try “Meet The Monkeys” an exciting walk-through experience. Other top exhibits include the Butterfly Paradise, where you can enjoy many species of butterfly as they fly around you.

    Make sure you don't miss feeding time at the Penguin Beach and find out more about these popular creatures from the zoo's experienced keepers. Penguin Beach, with a very large pool and underwater viewing areas, allows visitors to be close to the penguins like never before.

    Built in 2013, Tiger Territory is a great experience taking visitors deep into the world of these wonderful creatures.

    Rainforest Life is London's only living rainforest, where visitors can meet a variety of beautiful rainforest species including. In the all-new “Night Life” area you will discover the bats, and rats.

    With over 12,000 animals to see and incredible animal displays taking place throughout the day (including feeds and keeper talks), no visitor leaves disappointed. Learn more about London Zoo in our Interview with a Zoo Keeper on our London Pass Blog.

    You can visit the London Zoo for free with a London Pass—a fantastic saving of £23 for adults and over £16 for children. Children aged 3-4 will be charged on entrance fee for London Zoo.

    Does the future of filmmaking lie in virtual reality (VR) films?

   An ambitious team led by Yale senior Celine Tien might hold the answer to that question.

    Tien produced,directed and acted in Pippa's Pan,which she says is “one of the world's first live-action VR films.”The film,which was completed in April,mixes live action with VR sections.Some of the characters were created via animation（动画）and other techniques that distinguish the film from 360° VR videos like the ones frequently seen on YouTube.

    “360° VR videos are stagnant,which means you don't move with them and see a 360° view of whatever they're filming.”Tien explained.“What we're doing is immersive（沉浸式的）VR.When you put on the goggles (a kind of special glasses) you can physic.ally walk around in the space,pick up objects and engage with the environment.It's a huge difference.”

    The immersive VR film experience is different for everyone who interacts with the medium,but that doesn't mean the film's ending will change for each viewer.

    The film stars two Chinese-speaking actors."It's a love story about a woman suffering from Alzheimer's disease who is trying to bring back memories of her husband,"Tien said.

    The film has already been recognized by the VR industry.After handing in a short demo to the AT&T Developer Summit Conference,Tien and her team were invited to Las Vegas in January,where they came in third place.

    If you're dying to see the film already,your choices area bit limited: Pippa's Pan can't be seen in movie theaters unless they happen to have VR goggles available.According to Tien,many theaters in China will soon have the ability,which makes sense considering China is the film's target market.

    Pippa's Pan will be released in three languages: Chinese,English and Korean.“It can get spread in different ways: at film festivals with VR set ups and through HTC or Oculus headset stores,”Tien says.“If you have VR goggles you can download it and experience it yourself.We will also cooperate with movie theaters that have VR set ups.”

    First, I want to tell you how proud we are. Getting into Columbia shows what a great well-rounded student you are. Your academic, artistic, and social skills have truly blossomed（开花）in the last few years. You have become a talented and accomplished young woman. You should be as proud of yourself as we are.

    College will be the most important years in your life. It is in college that you will truly discover what learning is about. I want to tell you: “education is what you have left after all that is taught is forgotten”. What I mean by that is the materials taught isn't as important as you gaining the ability to learn a new subject, and the ability to analyze a new problem. That is really what learning in college is about—this will be the period where you go from teacher-taught to master-inspired, after which you must become self-learner.

    Follow your passion in college. Take courses you think you will enjoy. Steve Jobs says when you are in college, your passion will create many dots, and later in your life you will connect them. In his great speech given at Stanford, he gave the great example where he took calligraphy（书法）, and a decade later, it became the basis of the beautiful letters in Microsoft Word. So don't worry too much about what job you will have, and don't be too utilitarian（功利的）, and if you like Japanese or Korean, go for it! Enjoy picking your dots, and be assured one day you will find your calling, and connect a beautiful curve through the dots.

    Most importantly, make friends and be happy. College friends are often the best in life, because during college you are closer to them physically than to your mom and I. Pick a few friends and become really close to them-pick the ones who are honest and sincere to you. Don't worry about their hobbies, grades, looks, or even personalities. You have developed some real friendships in high school in your last two years, so trust your instinct, and make new friends.

    College is the four years where you have the greatest amount of free time, the first chance to be independent, the most possibilities to change and the lowest risk for making mistakes. So please treasure your college years! May Columbia become the happiest four years in your life, and may you blossom into just what you dream to be.

    For many people, the “golden years” are a time to slow down and recall past achievements. Nola Ochs—a Guinness record holder as the world's oldest college graduate at the age of 95—saw age as an opportunity to take on new challenges and satisfy unfulfilled goals.

    Born in 1911 in Illinois, Nola always loved learning. She was a good student who graduated from high school in 1929 and began college via correspondence course（函授课程）from Fort Hays State University in Kansas. After getting the degree of the college, she taught in county schools for four years before marrying her husband, Vernon Ochs.

    Soon, the realities of farming stopped any thoughts of furthering her education, though Nola lived a good, full life on the farm, raising four sons. She always yearned to learn more about the world she lived in, but not until after Vernon died in 1972, did Nola consider resuming her formal education.

    “I just thought something off the farm would be fun,” Nola explained. “Really, I had no thought of ever graduating. For 10 years, I just took classes that were of interest to me, mostly history and composition. And then one of the professors came to me and told me if I would take college algebra, I would have enough credit hours to graduate. And I finally made it.”

    For most people, graduating at the age of 95 with a 3.7 GPA might be enough of an accomplishment, but not for Nola. In May 2010, at the age of 98, Nola Ochs received her master's degree, making her the oldest person to receive that distinction.

By the time Nola passed away in 2016, at the incredible age of 105, she had achieved her goal of writing a book about her life experiences. At one point in the process, when asked for her life advice, she said, “Buy the plane ticket!” She meant that people should take advantage of life's opportunities and not wait until tomorrow.

    Eating is best when it's a social activity. Think of the meal a family enjoys in the evening when everyone's together after work or school, or the big get-togethers over food at Spring Festival. But now, in the age of the Internet and social media, anyone with an Internet connection can enjoy a social eating event.

    Mukbang-a South Korean phrase meaning “eating broadcast”-is an unusual food fanaticism that's sweeping the country. This is a meal where only one person gets to eat, while many viewers watch live shows of hosts eating large quantities of food. They leave comments on the dishes the host is taking, and the host responds to them live.

    So why have people taken to this unusual new food trend(趋势)? Jeff Yang, an Asian-American cultural critic, thinks that it's down to “the loneliness of unmarried or uncoupled South Koreans”. He believes that eating on your own can be hard in a country like South Korea, where social eating is such a long tradition. However, Mukbang gives people the feeling that they are part of something larger, it seems.

    Millions of people have trouble with food. Either they eat too much of it, or too little. Some say that the popularity of Mukbang helps people with these disorders. Those who always eat too much and put on weight can watch Mukbang live shows to satisfy their appetite (胃口). And those who don't eat enough can build their appetite by watching delicious food being eaten.

    Even though Mukbang is a South Korean phenomenon, it's also taken off in the US. But unlike South Koreans who sit down to enjoy noodles and kimchi (泡菜), Americans enjoy their own native dishes. This means that viewers of US Mukbang live shows will see locals stuffing themselves with hamburgers, fries and ice cream.

    Police Officer Tidwell left the station just after 8 a.m. on Sunday June 4. He had spent a boring night on duty and was looking forward to his day of rest. By habit he took a short-cut down the path behind Dugby Hall road and after a minute or two he saw a man climbing down a drainpipe (雨水管)from an open bedroom window of Number 29. In silence, Tidwell crept into the garden. The man reached the ground and was dusting himself down when he felt his arm caught.

    "It's 8:15 on a Sunday morning," said the officer, "and this sort of thing seems an unlikely adventure at such a time. Would you mind explaining?"

The man was obviously scared but tried to keep calm. He said, "I know what you are thinking, officer, but it isn't true. This is a funny mistake."

    "It's part of my job to take an interest in unusual events. I think you've just left this house in a manner other than the customary one. That may be quite innocent, but I'd like to make sure." Tidwell took out his notebook and a pen. "Name, address and occupation and then, please, tell me your story..."

    "Charlie Crane, lorry driver, from Nottingham, 51 Breton Street. My story..."

    "Yes. What were you doing like a fly on that wall, Mr. Crane?"

    "Well, I had a breakdown yesterday and had to stay the night here. Bed and breakfast. The land-lady's name is Mrs. Fern. She gave me breakfast at seven, and I was out of he: mthe right way and down at the lorry by half past seven. Only when I felt around for a cigarette did I realize I'd left $80 in my envelope under the pillow here at number 29. I always put it under my pillow at night. It's a habit I've got into. I even do it at home...

    "I see. Why didn't you miss it when you went to pay Mrs.... What's her name?"

    "I'd paid her last night. You've got to pay when you take the room, see? So I came rushing back, but it's Sunday, and she'd gone back to bed, and could I wake her? I rang the bell and banged on the front door for ten minutes before I came round here to the back and spotted my bedroom window still open. Up I went, then, up this pipe. It's a trick I learned in the army. She didn't make the bed、and money was still there. You know the rest, I hope you believe it because... "

    "Mr. Crane, whatever are you doing here? I thought you'd gone an hour ago." It was Mrs.  Fem, speaking from the kitchen at the corner of the house.