E-reading and e-books are slowly conquering the world. Compared to traditional paper books, e-books in some schools and universities attract more interest because the information flow seems much easier to manage and comes in a greatly higher quantity.

    Japan is known for the reform-minded attitude towards the gadget(精巧装置)world and for the fact that it is one of the first countries that encouraged in the educational system the emailing of homework.

    The digital textbook looks like the logical step in the world of learning. It is natural but it is also completely untraditional.

    The plan of the largest publishing companies to get in line with the trend is to save a large quantity of paper and make the kids become interested in learning using a cool gadget. Many USA universities and colleges have made students be used to the procedure of downloading the courses and of course the procedure involves interactive software and also the chance of using the computer.

    The traditional education system is still unwilling when it comes to giving up books. The standard approach of information taught out of a book and Shakespeare read out of an old school novel makes studying English as traditional as it can be.

    In a world where kids would rather see the movie than read a book, the digital age has brought along a completely different flavor to reading. Bringing that flavor in school will make teaching a greener and also a completely different matter.

Bicycle Safety

    Operation Always ride your bike in a safe, controlled manner on campus(校园). Obey rules and regulations. Watch out for walkers and other bicyclists, and always use your lights in dark conditions.

Theft Prevention Always securely lock your bicycle to a bicycle rack—even if you are only away for a minute. Register your bike with the University Department of Public Safety. It's fast, easy, and free. Registration permanently records your serial number, which is useful in the possible recovery of the bike stolen.

Equipment

    Brakes  Make sure that they are in good working order and adjusted properly.

    Helmet  A necessity, make sure your helmet meets current safety standards and fit properly.

Lights Always have a front headlight—visible at least 500 feet in front of the bike. A taillight is a good idea.

Rules of the Road

    Riding on Campus  As a bicycle rider, you have a responsibility to ride only on streets and posted bicycle paths. Riding on sidewalks or other walkways can lead to a fine. The speed limit for bicycles on campus is 15mph, unless otherwise posted. Always give the right of ways to walkers. If you are involved in an accident, you are required to offer appropriate aid, call the Department of Public Safety and remain at the scene until the officer lets you go.

    Bicycle Parking  Only park in areas reserved for bikes. Trees, handrails, hallways, and sign posts are not for bicycle parking, and parking in such posts can result in a fine.

If Things Go Wrong

    If you break the rules, you will be fined. Besides violating rules while riding bicycles on campus, you could be fined for:

No bicycle registration—————————————————$25

Bicycle parking banned————————————————--$30

Blocking path with bicycle ———————————————$40

Violation of bicycle equipment requirement ————————-$35

    In 1972, a social worker named Sanjit "Bunker " Roy founded Barefoot College in Tilonia, Rajasthan. Today the college trains women from villages for six months to build and maintain solar panels and other instruments. Barefoot College also offers education to the younger generation both during the day and at its solar bridge schools that meet by lamp light at night.

    The philosophy of the Barefoot College is largely inspired by the principles of Gandhi, starting with quality beyond social classes, sex or religion. As a matter of fact, women are favorably regarded as an underserved population that is necessary to bringing villages together. Another central principle of the college is self-reliance, teaching students to support and think for themselves.

    After the colleges female students have completed their half a year of training, they return to their villages villages, where they wait for solar panel parts to arrive from the college. Once they have all the pieces they need ,they construct the panels and begin collecting solar energy. For each village, the college also provides solar lamps. Villagers can, in addition, order parts for other solar-powered devices, such as water heaters and cooking stoves. Once assembled(组装）, they and the lamps are powered by the solar panels.

    The effect on the villages is huge. Before the solar panels and lamps arrived, villagers had only candles to light their homes. This prevented adults from doing serious work at night, and it made studying difficult for children as well. As for physicians, they have difficulty treating patients and performing operations at night because they had to rely on flashlights.

    Now there is power for not only the electrical appliances that the college provides but also devices like televisions, radios and computers. For the first time, the villagers can even connect to the world through the Internet.

    Living and dealing with kids can be a tough job these days, but living and dealing with parents can be even tougher.

    If I have learned anything in my 18 years, it is communication that is very important, both when you disagree and when you get along. With any relationship, you need to let others know how you are feeling. If you are not able to communicate, you drift apart. When you are mad at your parents, or anyone else, not talking to them doesn't solve anything.

    Communication begins with the concerns of another. It means that you can't just come home from school, go up to your room and ignore everyone. Even if you just say and see how their day was for five minutes, it is better than nothing.

    If you looked up the word “communication” in a dictionary, it would say “the exchange of ideas, the conveyance of information，correspondence (通信)，means of communication: a letter or a message”. To maintain a good relationship, you must keep communication strong. Let people know how you feel, even if ifs just by writing a note.

    When dealing with parents, you always have to make them feel good about how they are doing as a parent. If you are trying to make them see something as you see it, tell them that you'll listen to what they have to say, but ask them politely to listen to you. Yelling or walking away only makes the situation worse.

     This is an example: one night, Sophie went to a street party with her friends. She knew she had to be home by midnight after the fireworks, but she didn't feel she could just ask to go home. That would be rude. After all, they had been nice enough to take her along with them. Needless to say, she was late getting home. Her parents were mad at first, but when Sophie explained why she was late, they weren't as mad and let the incident go.

    Communication is the key factor here. If Sophie's parents had not been willing to listen, Sophie would have been in a lot of trouble. Communication isn't a one-way deal: it goes both ways. Just remember: if you get into a situation like Sophie's, tell the other person how you feel—listening is the key factor to communication.

    I went through a training program and became a literacy volunteer(扫盲志愿者)last summer. The training I received, though excellent, did not tell me how it was to work with a real student. When I began to discover what other people's lives were like because they could not read, I realized the true importance of reading.

    My first student Marie was a 44-year-old single mother of three. In the first lesson, I found out she walked two miles to the nearest supermarket twice a week because she didn't know which bus to take. When I told her I would get her a bus schedule, she told me it would not help because she could not read it. She said she also had difficulty once she got to the supermarket because she couldn't always remember what she needed. Since she did not know words, she could not write out a shopping list. Also, she could only recognize items by sight, so if the product had a different label(标识), she would not recognize it as the product she wanted.

    As we worked together, learning how to read built Marie's self-confidence, which encouraged her to continue her studies. She began to make rapid progress and was even able to take the bus to the supermarket. After this successful trip, she reported how self-confident she felt. At the end of the program, she began helping her youngest son, Tony, a shy first grader, with his reading. As she described this experience, I was proud of myself as well. I found that helping Marie to build herself-confidence was more rewarding than anything I had ever done before.

    As a literacy volunteer, I learned a great deal about teaching and helping others. In fact, I may have learned more from the experience than Marie did.

    A girl had to usually face adversity(逆境). One day, she couldn't help complaining to her father about her life and how things were so hard for her. She didn't know how she was going to make it and wanted to give up. She was tired of struggling. It seemed as one problem was solved a new one arose.

    Her father, a chef, took her to the kitchen. He filled three pots with water and placed each on a high fire. Soon the pots came to a boil. In one he placed carrots, in the second he placed eggs, and in the last he placed ground coffee beans. He let them into the water and boil, without saying a word.

    The daughter waited impatiently, wondering what he was doing. In about twenty minutes he turned off the burners. He made the carrots out and placed them in a bowl. He pulled the eggs out and placed them in another bowl. Then he poured the coffee out and placed it in a cup. Turning to her, he asked, "What do you see?" "Carrots, eggs and coffee," she replied.

    He brought her closer and asked her to feel the carrots. She did and noted that they were soft. He then asked her to take an egg and break it. After pulling off the shell, she observed the hard-boiled egg. Finally, he asked her to sip the coffee. She smiled, as she tasted its rich aroma(香味). She humbly asked, "What does it mean, Father?"

    He explained that each of them had faced the same hardship, boiling water, but each reacted differently. The carrot had been strong and hard. But after being subjected to the boiling water, it softened and became weak. The egg had been easily broken. Its thin outer shell had protected its liquid interior. But after going through the boiling water, its inside became hardened. The ground coffee beans were unique. After they were in the boiling water, they changed the water. "Which are you?" he asked his daughter. "When adversity knocks on your door, how do you respond? Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?"

    How about you, my friend? Are you the carrot that seems hard, but with pain and adversity you move back and become soft and lose your strength? Are you the egg, which starts off with a flexible heart? Were you a liquid spirit, but after a breakup, a divorce, or a layoff have you become hardened and stiff? Your shell looks the same, but are you bitter and tough with a stiff heart? Or are you like the coffee bean? The bean changes the hot water, the thing that is bringing the pain. When the water gets the hottest, it just tastes better. If you are like the bean, when things are at their worst, you get better and make things better around you.

    Ask yourself how you handle adversity. Are you a carrot, an egg, or a coffee bean?