Now Glen doesn't like to think what might have happened had he and his best friends, Ray Wightman and Chris Johnson, picked their usual path along a rocky outcrop－the faster route to Johnson s home on Triangle Mountain. They were heading there after school that day－April 14, 1999－to play street hockey in Johnson's driveway. There were other lucky twists, too: not stopping at the shops to get a cola« as they usually did; hearing the strange cry.

    It was 3:30 pm. The three teens were laughing and talking when suddenly they heard a strange cry coming from the ditch(沟渠) across the road. Crossing to take a look, they found an Adidas gym bag sitting deep in the icy water. They climbed down the steep bank and pulled the bag from the water, expecting to find abandoned cats or dogs inside. Instead, the boys found a trembling newborn girl. Wrapped in an old blanket, wearing a thin nightshirt, she was almost blue, her lips shaking from the cold and her crying.

    The boys couldn't have been more astonished. They knew this one needed to get warm and dry, although they didn't know much about babies. Ray dug through his gym bag and wrapped her in a T-shirt. “We didn't know what to do,” said Glen. “I didn't think any of us had really held a baby before.” So the three stood beside the ditch, dumbfounded, taking turns to hold the baby to their chests to keep her warm.

    “We knew it was no use walking up to Ray's house, because his mum was working and no one would be home. We figured we'd have a better chance just staying by the road and flagging down someone.” So they stood there and waited.

    A car drove by and the boys caught the driver's attention, telling her that they had found a baby. The woman then drove off to get help. When the police and ambulance came 20 minutes later, the teens were told the baby was probably two or three hours old and had perhaps been in the ditch for an hour or more. They were also told that they had saved her life and that given 10-20 minutes more in the cold water, she probably would be drowned.

    The young boy saw me, or rather, he saw the car and quickly ran up to me, eager to sell his bunches (串) of bananas and bags of peanuts. Though he appeared to be about twelve, he seemed to have already known the bitterness of life. "Banana 300 naira. Peanuts 200 naira"

    He said in a low voice. I bargained him down to 200 total for the fruit and nuts. When he agreed, I handed him a 500 naira bill He didn't have change, so I told him not to worry.

    He said thanks and smiled a row of perfect teeth.

    When, two weeks later, I saw the boy again, I was more aware of my position in a society where it's not that uncommon to see a little boy who should be in school standing on the corner selling fruit in the burning sun. My parents had raised me to be aware of the advantage we had been afforded and the responsibility it brought to us.

    I pulled over and rolled down my window. He had a bunch of bananas and a bag of peanuts ready. I waved them away. "What's up?" I asked him. "I… I don't have money to buy books for school." I reached into my pocket and handed him two fresh 500 naira bills.

    "Will this help?" I asked. He looked around nervously before taking the money. One thousand naira was a lot of money to someone whose family probably made about 5,000 naira or less each year. "Thank you, sir," he said. 'Thank you very much."

    When driving home, I wondered if my little friend actually used the money for school-books. What if he's a cheat? And then I wondered why I did it. Did I do it to make myself feel better? Was I using him? Later, I realized that I didn't know his name or the least bit about him, nor did I think to ask.

    Over the next six months, I was busy working in a news agency in northern Nigeria. Sometime after I returned, I went out for a drive. When I was about to pull over, the boy suddenly appeared by my window with a big smile ready on his face

    "Oh, gosh! Long time."

    "Are you in school now?" I asked.

    He nodded.

    "That's good," I said. A silence fell as we looked at each other, and then I realized what he wanted. "Here," I held out a 500 naira bill. "Take this." He shook his head and stepped back as if hurt. "What's wrong?" I asked. "It's a gift"

    He shook his head again and brought his hand from behind his back. His face shone with sweat (汗水). He dropped a bunch of bananas and a bag of peanuts in the front seat before he said, "I've been waiting to give these to you."

    It's fun to dream about vacationing in Europe, but international flights are not always particularly affordable. If you're looking to experience a taste of European culture, however, there are many places in the US with a European heritage (传统).

    Founded by Spanish settlers in 1565, St. Augustine is full of Spanish-inspired architecture, historical sites and other attractions. The Colonial Quarter is a popular tourist area, and there are many places to grab traditional Spanish food.

    Holland, Michigan

    Holland was settled in 1847 by Dutch Calvinist separatists, under the leadership of Dr Albertus van Raalte. Terrible economic conditions in the Netherlands forced them to emigrate (移居国外), while their desires for religious freedom led them to unite and settle together as a group. Much of the original architecture was destroyed in an 1871 fire, but the city still has many windmills, eateries, art and even an annual tulip festival and holiday market.

    New Glarus, Wisconsin

    More than 160 years after it was founded, New Glarus has maintained much of its Swiss heritage and old world traditions. New Glarus' Swiss immigrant roots are proudly on display with its Alpine architecture, Swiss Historical Village Museum and Yodel Club. The Wisconsin village also puts on cultural events like the Heidi Folk Festival and Swiss Volksfest.

    Solvang, California

    Located near Santa Barbara, Solang is a charming California city with Danish roots.  A group of immigrates from Denmark founded Solvang just over 100 years ago to create a Danish home away from home. As such, the city is full of Danish architecture, restaurants, shops and even a copy of Copenhagen's famous Little Mermaid statue.

    Plastics remain one of the most - used materials for making many things. Things made of plastics can be very strong and last a long time. Plastics are also much lighter than metal and can easily be formed into different shapes. Plastics can take hundreds of years to break down on their own. And very few kinds are highly recyclable.

    A team of researchers working at the US Department of Energy says it has created a kind of plastic that could lead to products that are 100 percent recyclable. It recently reported the discovery in a study in the journal Nature Chemistry.

    The researchers say the new material is a plastic polymer (聚合体)called polydiketoenamine, or PDK. The team reports the material can be broken down in parts at the molecular (分子的)level. It can then be built up again to form plastics of different shapes, textures and colors. The researchers say this process can be repeated over and over again—without the plastic material losing any performance or quality.

    "Most plastics were never made to be recycled," lead researcher Peter Christensen said in a statement. " But we have discovered a new way to assemble plastics that takes recycling into consideration from a molecular perspective. "

    Many plastics have different chemicals added to them to make them more useful and powerful. The problem is that these chemicals attach to the monomers (单体), which remain in plastics even after the material gets processed at a recycling plant. The research team reported that, with the newly discovered PDK material, the monomers could be recovered and separated from any chemical additives.

    Next, the researchers plan to develop PDK plastics "with a wide range of thermal and mechanical properties. These plastics could be used for many kinds of cloth, as well as things such as 3D printed materials and foams. In addition, the team is trying to include plant - based materials in the process.

    Mr. Lee was in bed and was trying to go to sleep when he heard the bell ring. He turned on the light and looked at his clock. It was twelve o'clock. "Who can it be at this time of night?" He thought. He decided to go and find out. So he got of bed, put on his dressing gown (浴袍) and went to the door. When he opened the door, there was nobody there. "That is very strange." Then he went back to his bedroom, took off his dressing gown, got back into bed ,turned off the light and tried to go to sleep.

    A few minutes later he heard the bell again. Mr. Lee jumped out of bed very quickly and rushed to the door. He opened it, but again he found no one there. He closed the door and tried not to feel angry. Then he saw a piece of paper on the floor. He picked it up. There were some words on it : "It is now after midnight(午夜), so it is April Fool's Day (愚人节). April fool to you!"

    "Oh, it was the English boy next door!" Mr. Lee exclaimed (惊叫) and almost smiled. He went back to bed and feel asleep at once. The bell did not ring again.

    Better known by his stage name KUN, Cai Xukun is a phenomenon, opening up the music industry in China.

    Last year, after participating in the reality TV show Idol Producer, receiving the most votes from fans, the singer-songwriter rose to fame overnight. At just 21 years old, Cai has topped Chinese music charts with multiple singles.

    On July 26, KUN released his newest single Young. Within just 20 seconds, it reached a million sales.

    KUN wrote the song to share his understanding of youth. He mixed R&B and electronic beats (节拍) to make it more cheerful. A reviewer wrote on QQ Music, "When you listen to the song, you just seem to go back to youth again."

    The song was an early birthday present to himself which he celebrated on Aug 2. KUN also hopes that he always has the courage to pursue (追求) his love of music, no matter what people think. "My works are like my children and I have put my best effort into them." he told the Global Times.

    Indeed, KUN has written and produced most of his songs on his own. "I want every piece of my work to have my own spirit in it," he told music website Soundigest, "I feel more enjoyment when I'm performing my own work."

    Although KUN loves performing onstage, when the lights go down, he prefers to fall back into his own world and darkness at night. "I always get inspired when it's quiet, late at night/' he told I-D magazine, "It's a great moment for me to create new things. Sometimes, I can write songs with a melody (旋律) I heard in a dream."

    To develop his introspection (反思) and find new inspiration, KUN attends different kinds of musical performances — from festivals to opera houses. "I just like to do everything, all for my music, all for my art," he told I-D.

    With such talent and dedication to music, it seems that KUN will continue to make his mark in the competitive Chinese music industry.