The weather is very important to farmers. The calendar might say “August”， but the weather's more like October. For some farmers the cool weather is a good thing. For others, it's a cause for concern.

    At Apple Hill, the cooler weather was giving the Boeger Winery a chance to concentrate on bottling instead of picking. “Things were really maturing, it has just been a welcome relief to have more time to prepare.” said Greg Boeger of Boeger Winery.

    But down in the Delta, the earlier hot weather has them two weeks ahead of schedule. Their harvest actually started on Tuesday, and this cooling trend is a worry. There have been no problems yet, but for each of the last two years heavy rain right after Labor Day was a problem, one that Don Pylman would not like to see repeated.

    “If it doesn't start raining, we're in good shape，” said Pylman. “If the sun comes out and clears up we can get right back to work, but if we do get rain, the rots will start.”

    The kind of grape makes a difference as well. Thin­skinned grapes like the chardonnay variety are much more sensitive to rain than some of the others. They're also more difficult to dry off.

    Steven Stein likes to follow garbage trucks. His strange habit makes sense when you consider that he's an environmental scientist who studies how to reduce garbage, including things that fall off garbage trucks as they drive down the road. What is even more interesting is that one of Stein's jobs is defending an industry behind the plastic shopping bag.

    Americans use more than 100 billion thin plastic bags every year. So many end up in tree branches or along highways that a growing number of cities do not allow them at checkouts (收银台). The bags are not allowed in some 90 cities in California, including Los Angeles. Eyeing these headwinds, plastic-bag makers are hiring (聘请)scientists like Stein to make the case that their products are not as bad for the planet as most people assume.

    Among the bag makers' arguments: many cities with bans（禁令）still allow shoppers to purchase paper bags, which are easily recycled but require more energy to produce and transport. And while plastic bags may be ugly to look at, they represent a small percentage of all garbage on the ground today.

    The industry has also taken aim at the product that has appeared as its replacement: reusable shopping bags. The stronger a reusable bag is, the longer its life and the more plastic-bag use it cancels out. However, longer-lasting reusable bags often require more energy to make. One study found that a cotton bag must be used at least 131 times to be better for the planet than plastic.

    Environmentalists don't doubt these points. They hope paper bags will be banned someday too and want shoppers to use the same reusable bags for years.

    Some people seem to have extraordinary memories. Zheng Aiqiang, a "memory athlete" on TV show Super Brain, can remember 2,660 numbers in just one hour!

    You would think people like this have special brains. But according to a recent study by researchers from the US and the Netherlands, the brain structures of ordinary people and 23 of the world's leading memory athletes show no difference.

    That's because good memories can be trained. New research in the journal Neuron(神经元期刊) suggests that you can become a super memorizer with just six weeks of hard training.

    Researchers found that technique(技巧) called loci, invented by ancient Greeks, can greatly help improve memory. By using loci, you are using your imagination to improve the brain's memory networks. You can link(关联) something you need to remember with a place that you know very well. For example, to remember a list of numbers, imagine yourself walking through your house. Each thing is linked to a number. For example, zero could be handle(把手) on the door and five could be the painting on the wall.

    In one study, some ordinary people were given 20 minutes to remember 72 words. First they could only remember 26 of them. But when they were taught loci, they could remember 62 words.

    "Not everyone can become a memory champion. But everyone using the technique can improve a lot from the level they're at," said Boris Konrad, one of the researchers in the study.

    You've probably visited the Tian'anmen Gatetower—the landmark building of Beijing, but you may not have heard of Kuai Xiang. Along with him, the following remarkable architects all took the center stage at their times.

    Kuai Xiang(1399—1481)

    Tian'anmen Gatetower is universally considered the brainchild of Kuai Xiang. By following in the footsteps of ancient homebuilders, he successfully presented the Emperor Judy with a grand wooden structure which has stood the test of time for almost 600 years. Visitors are also hooked on its delicate paintings.

    Ieob Ming Pei (1917-present)

    His motto is: Traditions should be sealed in glass boxes at museums. He is always struggling with innovation. Although under grilling from French conservative critics, he still planted a glass pyramid into the courtyard of the Louvre. His other works include John F. Kennedy Library, Beijing Fragrant Hill Hotel and Suzhou Museum.

    Zaha Hadid(1950-2016)

    In 2004, she became the first woman to win the Pritzker Architecture Prize, the Nobel Prize for architecture. She used tricks to maximize available space. Her fluid-style works pioneer the concept of micro-living. The curves(曲线) of Guangzhou Opera House perfectly match the rise and fall of its surrounding buildings, forming a unique view.

    Meng Fanchao (1959-present)

    Many people dismissed the building of a mega bridge as a pipe dream, but Meng Fanchao turned this into reality by building Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macao Bridge. This longest cross-sea bridge, when viewed afar, looks like a dynamic dragon braving the rolling waves of Lingding Sea.

    Next time you raise an eyebrow at the views of your partner, friend, sibling （兄弟姐妹） or colleague, remember they could be helping to make you smarter. New research shows that intelligence is not fixed but can be improved throughout adulthood by family members, bright mates and intellectually challenging careers. The study challenges the commonly held belief that intelligence is fixed by the age of about 18.

    Scientific consensus suggests that intelligence is controlled by genes, with environmental factors such as schooling and nutrition playing a partial role up to this age. After this point, IQ scores become steady（稳定的）. But James Flynn, professor of political studies and psychology at the University of Otago in New Zealand, argues that people can "upgrade" their own intelligence throughout their lives. He believes intellectual stimulation（刺激）from others is important as the "brain seems to be rather like a muscle - the more you use it, the stronger it gets". However, the opposite is also true - so people sharing a home or workplace with those who are intellectually challenged risk seeing their IQ levels nosedive as a result.

    Professor Flynn analyzed US intelligence tests from the last 65 years and created new IQ "age tables". He found a bright ten-year-old with brothers and sisters of average intelligence will suffer a five to ten point IQ disadvantage compared to a similar child with equally bright brothers and sisters and special educational treatment to help pull them up.

    Professor Flynn also concluded that although genetics and early life experiences determine about 80% of intelligence, the remaining 20% is linked to lifestyle. This means that people can raise their IQ, or allow it to fall, by ten points or more. He suggested the best way to improve IQ levels is to mix with bright friends, find an intellectually challenging job and marry someone cleverer.

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Successful Fishermen

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