A new tool of communication called the “drift diary” is doing the rounds among young college graduates.

    The “drift diary”, like those ancient paper messages put into a bottle left to drift on the high seas to reach hundreds of miles away, connects lonely hearts.

    The “drift diary” was first started by a Beijing woman, who goes by the Net name Little S, in 2007. It has become the preferred tool of communication among youngsters afraid to reveal their innermost self to peers, but wanting to share their lives with others.

    The way it works is that the initiator（发起人）of the diary mentions it on popular  Internet forums such as Tianya and Douban. Those wanting to react or otherwise add to the diary then send their real names and addresses to the initiator via e-mails or text messages.

    The numbers in one group are usually restricted to between 30 and 50. The diary then passes on to another by express delivery or personal handover. The diary writers are mostly anonymous but if they wish to reveal their identity they can do so by posting their contact information at the end of their postings.

    The diary writers add not just words but also decorate the plain notebooks with cartoons, drawings or even dress it up with a ribbon or a new cover. Interesting experiences, travel journals, the simple joys of everyday living or sweet recollections of childhood, all find a place in these diaries. Most often, though, the writers set down their frustrations and predicaments.

    It usually takes one year for a diary to return to the initiator. The last recorder is the luckiest one, with access to all previous entries, while others can request photocopies of these from the diary's initiator.

    What's On?

Electric Underground

    7:00pm－1:00am   Free at the Cyclops Theatre

    Do you know who's playing in your area? We're bringing you an exciting evening of live rock and pop music from the best local bands. Are you interested in becoming a musician and getting a recording contract (合同)? If so, come early to the talk at 7.30pm by Jules Skye, a successful record producer. He's going to talk about how you can find the right person to produce your music.

Gee Whizz

    8:30pm-10:30pm   Comedy at Kaleidoscope

    Come and see Gee Whizz perform. He's the funniest stand-up comedian on the comedy scene. This joyful show will please everyone, from the youngest to the oldest. Gee Whizz really knows how to make you laugh! Our bar is open from 7.00pm for drinks and snacks (快餐).

Simon's Workshop

    5:00 p m-7:30 pm   Wednesdays at Victoria Stage

    This is a good chance for anyone who wants to learn how to do comedy. The workshop looks at every kind of comedy, and practices many different ways of making people laugh. Simon is a comedian and actor who has 10 years' experience of teaching comedy. His workshops are exciting and fun. An evening with Simon will give you the confidence to be funny.

Charlotte Stone

    8:00pm-11:00pm   Pizza World

    Fine food with beautiful jazz music; this is a great evening out. Charlotte Stone will perform songs from her new best-selling CD, with James Pickering on the piano. The menu is Italian, with excellent meat and fresh fish, pizzas and pasta (面食). Book early to get a table. Our bar is open all day, and serves cocktails, coffee, beer, and white wine.

    The World Happiness Report, a United Nations agency report, measures (估量) how happy people are, and why. Norway is the happiest place on earth—beating neighbour Denmark from the number one position.

    Denmark, Iceland, Switzerland and Finland are among the top five, while the Central African Republic came last. Western Europe and North America took up most of the places at the top of table, with the US and UK at 14th and 19th respectively.

    The World Happiness Report mainly depends on asking a simple question of more than 1,000 people every year in more than 150 countries. “Imagine a ladder, with steps numbered from 0 at the bottom to 10 at the top,” the question asks. “The top of the ladder is the best possible life for you and the bottom of the ladder is the worst possible life for you. On which step of the ladder would you say you personally feel you stand at this time?”

    The average (平均的) result is the country's score—from Norway's 7.54 to the central African Republic's 2.69. But the report also tries to explain why one country is happier than another. It looks at reasons including economic strength, social support, freedom of choice, and generosity.

    This year's report also has a text titled “restoring (恢复) American happiness”, which examines why happiness levels in the United States are falling, despite continually-increasing economic improvement. “The United States can and should raise happiness by solving American's social problems—rising inequality and distrust—rather than focusing mainly on economic growth,” the authors said.

    Jeffrey Sachs, the director of the Sustainable Development Solutions Network, which published the report, said President Donald Trump's policies were likely to make things worse.

    Humans and many other mammals have unusually efficient internal temperature regulating systems that automatically maintain stable core body temperatures in cold winters and warm summers. In addition, people have developed cultural patterns and technologies that help them adjust to extremes of temperature and humidity (湿度).

    In very cold climates, there is a constant danger of developing hypothermia, which is a life-threatening drop in core body temperature to below normal levels. The normal temperature for humans is about 37.0℃. However, differences in persons and even the time of day can cause it to be as much as 6℃ higher or lower in healthy individuals. It is also normal for core body temperature to be lower in elderly people. Hypothermia begins to occur when the core body temperature drops to 34.4℃. Below 29.4℃, the body cools more rapidly because its natural temperature regulating system usually fails. The rapid decline in core body temperature is likely to result in death. However, there have been rare cases in which people have been saved after their temperatures had dropped to 13.9-15.6℃. This happened in 1999 to a Swedish woman who was trapped under an ice sheet in freezing water for 80 minutes. She was found unconscious, not breathing, and her heart had stopped beating, yet she was eventually saved despite the fact that her temperature had dropped to 13.7℃.

    In extremely hot climates or as a result of uncontrollable infections, core body temperatures can rise to equally dangerous levels. This is hyperthermia. Life-threatening hyperthermia typically starts in humans when their temperatures rise to 40.6-41.7℃. Only a few days at this extraordinarily high temperature level is likely to result in the worsening of internal organs and death.

    One day after school, I went to the teacher's office to see my teacher, but nobody was there. As I was about to leave, I noticed a piece of paper on the floor. I picked it up and saw the words "FINAL-TERM EXAMINATION" at the top. I put the paper into my school bag secretly and ran out of the room.

    After I came back home, I took out the paper quickly. It was the exam paper of my worst subject, History. I felt excited. My heart beat fast. I took out my History book and started working on the answer. I had never answered any questions so seriously.

On the day of the History exam, I went into the exam hall confidently. When the paper was sent to me, I dreamt of getting the highest mark in the whole grade and could not help smiling. "My History teacher always encouraged me to work hard and get better grades, but I let him down time and time again. This time I will give him a big surprise," I thought.

    When the teacher said we could start, I turned the paper over. To my great surprise, all the questions were different. Later I felt nervous. In the end, I almost left the paper undone. After the exam. I ran to the toilet, took out the paper and carefully read it from the top. Oh! It was last year's exam paper. I read all the questions but I hadn't read the date.

    This is a lesson in which I know I have to put my feet on the ground. I regretted doing such a silly thing. After that, I told my teacher the truth and I promised to be honest. From then on, I worked harder than ever before.

    Laptop computers are popular all over the world. People use them on trains and airplanes, in airports and hotels. These laptops connect people to their workplace. In the United States today, laptops also connect students to their classrooms.

    Westlake College in Virginia will start a laptop computer program that allows students to do schoolwork anywhere they want. Within five years, each of the 1500 students at the college will receive a laptop. The laptops are part of a $10 million computer program at Westlake, a 110-year-old college. The students with laptops will also have access to the Internet. In addition, they will be able to use e-mail to "speak" with their teachers, their classmates, and their families. However, the most important part of the laptop program is that students will be able to use computers without going to computer labs. They can work with it at home, in a fast-food restaurant or under the trees—anywhere at all!

    Because of the many changes in computer technology, laptop use in higher education, such as colleges and universities, is workable. As laptops become more powerful, they become more similar to desktop computers.

    In addition, the portable computers can connect students to not only the Internet, but also libraries and other resources. State higher-education officials are studying how laptops can help students. State officials are also testing laptop programs at other universities, too.

    At Westlake College, more than 60 percent of the staff use computers. The laptops will allow all teachers to use computers in their lessons. As one Westlake teacher said, "Here we are in the middle of Virginia and we're giving students a window on the world. They can see everything and do everything."