The Greatest Navigational Journey

    In 1787 Captain Bligh was given command of “The Bounty”, a three-year-old merchant ship. His mission was to transport breadfruit plants from the island of Tahiti to the West Indies. We know the popular story of this voyage and the rebellion, in which Bligh has been presented as hard, violent and thoroughly unpleasant captain. However, there is quite a lot of evidence to suggest that this picture is far from being true. He seems to have been unusually thoughtful about the health and welfare of his men. For example he made sure that his crew got exercise, insisted on cleanliness on his ship, and adopted the practice of giving them a drink which prevented scurvy every day.

    When Captain Bligh arrived in Tahiti, it became clear that it would be some months before the breadfruit trees were ready to be taken to the West Indies. Instead of going off right away, he gave his crew extended shore leave. This may have been a mistake as many were unhappy about leaving when the time came. Finally, on the return journey the rebellion took place. The ship was under the command of the rebels and Captain Bligh had to leave in a small boat.

    Captain Bligh's achievement was to get to dry land successfully. It is one of the supreme examples of seamanship. Apart from Bligh there were 18 members of his crew sailing in an open boat about 23 feet long and 7 feet wide. They took with them 25 gallons of water, 150 pounds of bread and 30 pounds of pork. They had no guns or other weapons. The boat was so low in the water that it seemed likely to sink at any time. On one occasion Captain Bligh tried to land on an island to get more water. He and his men were attacked by hostile natives and one of the crew was killed. At this point Bligh decided to sail directly to the Dutch settlement on the island of Timor without stopping. The distance was about 4,000 miles. The voyage took about 42 days and he had no advanced navigational equipment. However, his skill and commitment proved equal to the task and amazingly no one else died. It was truly a remarkable achievement.

    Tonight, my piano concert was the most important thing in my family. My grandparents were coming by plane to hear me play. Even my busy Aunt Dianne who is on TV every night reading the news, was coming.

    But one thing was for sure. I would never win an award for my piano playing. And that's just because the more I practiced ,the more nervous I got. So there I was, on stage, in my beautiful dress, and I sat down at the piano. But when I started to play, I hit a wrong note. I told myself to start over. But then I hit the wrong note again. It was as if I hadn't practiced at all.

    Finally the disaster was over. I ran off the stage. I couldn't understand why people were applauding. But they were. My mom and my dad had flowers for me, and we were all supposed to go out for a nice dinner, but I couldn't. I just wanted to go home and cry and never go anywhere again. After we went back home, Aunt Dianne just came in and sat down on the side of my bed.

    "It was my first night on the air," she said."I had never been on television before, and I made a mistake. I mispronounced my name and the name of the news show. And you know what? No one even noticed but me. Just like tonight, no one noticed—just you". Aunt Dianne was right. I think we are harder on ourselves than anyone else is. Maybe I will leave my room. And maybe, I'll play the piano again.

    Here are some of the smartest animals in the world.

Pigs

    Pigs are actually very smart animals. Pigs are one of the cleanest if they are given a choice. If you provide them with enough space, they will make sure they separate their dining area from their living space. Studies have also shown that they can actually be good at video games. To get food, they will follow other pigs and then steal it from right under their noses. The victimized(受害的)pigs will then come out wiser from this. They will change their behavior next time to prevent other pigs from stealing from them.

Crows

    They are smart and creative, with the highest IQ among all birds. Crows have been known to throw nuts and shells on a road so that cars will drive over and open them. They also have the ability to make knives to cut leaves and grass.

Elephants

    They have extremely large brains, even bigger than humans'. They bury(埋葬)their dead families and friends properly, the only other animal to do this besides humans. They also know which leaves are medicinal and will eat specific plants depending on the sickness they are feeling. They also have the ability to recognize themselves in the mirror.

Bottlenose Dolphins

    They actually have the ability to watch television on the their own because of their ability to process acoustic and visual(视觉和听觉)information at the same time. They can also recognize themselves in the mirror, which they use to inspect their own bodies. Their comprehension skills are very high. Studies have shown that they even have the ability to choose the “I don't know” option during difficult tests.

    New research brings some good news for lovers of spicy(辛辣的) foods, after finding that eating hot red chili peppers might help to extend lifespan（寿命）.

    Consuming hot red chili peppers might reduce death risk, say Chopan and Littenberg from the research team. In hot peppers, such as Mexico peppers, the strong flavor comes from a compound(复合物), which does not exist in sweet peppers or onions. Studies have suggested that this compound can offer a welth of health benefits.

    A study of more than 16,000 people in the United States revealed that individuals who consumed red chili peppers had a lower risk of death from all causes over an average of 18 years than those who did not eat the spicy food. Compared with participants who did not consume hot red chili peppers, those who did were found to be at 13 percent reduced risk of all-cause death.

    For example, a recent study reported by Medical News Today, found that the compound might have the potential to stop breast cancer, while an earlier study linked the compound to a reduced risk of digest system cancers. Still, the available data suggested that hot red chili pepper consumption was most strongly associated with a reduced risk of death from heart disease.

    While the researchers are unable to identify the concrete compound by which red chili peppers might extend lifepan, the team says that it is likely due to the compound that is effectively against obesity(肥胖症).

    Overall, the team says that these latest findings support those of the 2015 study, linking spicy food intake to reduced risk of death by showing “a significant decrease in death associated with hot red chili pepper consumption.” However, Chopan and Littenberg note that the earlier study was only conducted in Chinese adults, so the now research makes these findings more credible.

    Traditionally, robots have been hard, made of metal and other rigid material. But a team of scientists at Harvard University in the US has managed to build an entirely soft robot-one that draws inspiration from an octopus (章鱼).

    Described in science journal Nature, the "Octobot" could pave the way for more effective autonomous robots that could be used in search，rescue and exploration. "The Octobot is minimal system which may serve as a foundation for a new generation of completely soft, autonomous robots" the study's authors wrote.

Robots built for precise, repetitive movements in a controlled environment don't do so well on rough terrains (地形) or in unpredictable conditions. And they aren't especially safe around humans, because they're made out of hard and heavy parts that could be potentially dangerous to their users.

    So researchers have been working on building soft robots for decades. They're taken inspiration from nature, looking to animals from jellyfish to cockroaches, which are often made up of more flexible matter.

    But creating a completely soft robot remains a challenge. Even if engineers build a silicone (硅酮) body, it's still a grand challenge to construct flexible versions of essential parts, such as a source of power.

    "Although soft robotics is still in its early stage, it holds great promise for several applications, such as search-rescue operations and exploration," Barbara Mazzolai and Virgilio Mattoli of the Italian Institute of Technology' Center for Micro-BioRobotics, wrote in a comment. "Soft robots might also open up new approaches to improving wellness and quality of life."

Dear Mom,

    I haven't written before for quite a while because I have got no energy. I now get around my room and this floor of the hospital with a walking stick but I can go only a little bit at a time because I'm awfully weak yet. My right leg was taken out of the cast (石膏) several days ago and it's still as stiff as a board and awfully sore from so much carving around the knee joint. But the surgeon says that eventually it will be all right. I've included a picture of me in bed. It looks like my left leg is a stump (残肢), but it really isn't. Just bent so it looks that way...

    This war makes us a bit less fools than we were. There isn't going to be any such thing as "foreigners" for me after the war is won. I've gotten Italian pretty well. I've picked up quite a lot of Polish and my French is improving. You want to be prepared for a lot of visitors after the war now because I've a lot of pals coming to see me in Chicago. I don't know when I'll be back. I can't get in the army and they won't take me with two shaky legs in the draft (征兵) if I go home. So I might as well stay over here and avoid the awkwardness for a while.

    Also Ma, I'm in love again. Now don't start worrying about me getting married for I'm not. I'm not even going to get engaged. So don't write any "God Bless U, My Children": Not for about 10 years. You're a dear old kid, and still my best girl. God bless you and write me often... I love you.

Ernie