My mom takes pride in the fact that I was talking in three and four word sentences before I was ten months old. Some say it's a gift while others simply think I talk too much.

    As my thirties came to a close, I found myself reflecting on my life. I'm very happy and have no significant regrets. However, when I looked back on those times of difficulty, I saw a clear common denominator(特征); I didn't seem to know when to stop talking. Whether it was hurting someone's feelings, or having carelessly told a secret, the incident could have been avoided had I closed my mouth sooner. So I decided to practice the power of quiet.

    To take this step, I needed to understand how people could sit comfortably in a group and not talk. Why does my husband feel completely content to say nothing in a conversation? He's highly intelligent and has wonderful opinions but he'll sit quietly and just listen. Even when he's asked a pointed question, he'll answer with few words while still communicating effectively. What a talent!

    Can you imagine being happy just listening? In surveying those I know who talk less than I do, I got two answers—they either didn't feel confident enough to speak up, or they just didn't feel the need to participate in the conversation. Of course there were other reasons for not talking, but these were the two most popular answers.

    The first one didn't work for me. I'm just fine letting people know what I think about them, and hopefully it will make the conversation much more interesting. The second one didn't work either. I do feel the need to participate. I feel it physically like an electrical pulse through my body; sometimes it's so strong that it causes me to behave badly in the form of interrupting or speaking in an unusually loud voice. I had to look further.

    An interesting thing happened on this journey to the power of quiet. During my weekly yoga class, it came to me like an answer so clear that the words rang in my head like soft, heavenly bells.

    I talked too much so people would know I cared about them. It was my way of taking care of those I love. I decided before my fortieth birthday, that from that day forward, those around me would know I loved them, and cared what they thought and felt, but I was going to practice the power of quiet.

    As my forty-second birthday approaches, I can say that deciding to talk less has been more about focusing on quality rather than quantity. I've found that listening more shows those who I care about that I really do care how they feel. Now when I break in, it means more to them. Oh, sure, I still have my short periods of talking too much, but for the most part this has been one resolution that I can call a success.

    In the frozen continent of Antarctica scientists fear an alien invasion — not from outer space, but carried in people's pockets and bags.

    Seeds and plants accidentally brought to Antarctica by tourists and scientists may introduce alien plant species which could threaten the survival of native plants in the finely balanced ecosystem.

    “The people that were carrying the most had lots and lots of seeds. They really were real threats,” said Dana Bergstrom, from the Australian Antarctic Division.

    “When we take things in through hitchhiking（搭车旅行） then we get species which are competitive. The plants and animals there are not necessarily competitive, so we'd start losing various precious biodiversity（生物多样性） on the (Antarctic) continent”, Bergstrom told Reuters.

    Amongst the alien species discovered were the Iceland Poppy, and Annual Winter Grass — all from cold climates and capable of growing in Antarctica.

    The Antarctic Peninsula, where most tourists travel, is now considered a “hot spot” on the frozen continent and the warmer the climate, the easier for seeds to grow. “The peninsula(半岛) is warming at some of the greatest rates on the planet,” said Bergstrom.

    The study, the first continent-wide assessment of invasive species in Antarctica, surveyed about 1,000 passengers during 2007-2008, the first year of the International Polar Year, an international effort to research the polar areas.

    Bergstrom said the one alien seed that had gained a foothold is Annual Winter Grass. It is a strong weed in the sub-Antarctic and is on the Antarctic island of King George. It has also made its way to the tail part of the Antarctic continent.

    Recently, the TV show “Where are we going, Dad?” produced by Hunan SatelliteTelevision is a big hit across nation. Many famous stars brought their children to a strange village alone, and they had to spend 72 hours with their children there. The program fully showed us a modern version of the “how to be a good father”. As the young parents today are too busy to take care of their children, this new form of “Lost on the way” played by nanny Daddy and cute kids triggered（触发）a lot of people's emotional resonance（共鸣）. Both the kids and their parents will find that their hearts are being drawn closer. But this kind of feeling has just proved that there is a big spiritual barrier between the modern parents and children.The TV shows like “Children are hard to support!”, “Where are we going, Dad?”, “hot mom” and “cute kids” are becoming more and more popular. All of these show the new parents' confusion in children's education and the appeal for the balance between career and family.

    In the real life, on the one hand, the young parents feel helpless because they are too busy to accompany their children under the pressures of work and life; on the other hand, they continue to do so. The data collected by HNTV shows that nearly two-thirds of their audience are female, among whom 36% are aged from 25 to 34.We can imagine such a scene that one evening a young mother is watching the show with her young children, while her husband is still at work or trapped in socializing, or maybe is just playing computer games in the bedroom. The story of a child without the company of father is still going on. In fact, it is sometimes the same to mothers. In a modern family, it is often the old who take the responsibility of raising a child. The participation of mother in the children's education is also very low.

    It is just this kind of confusion where the parents have gone in the modern family education, and where the parents will guide their children to go that “Where are we going, Dad?” shows us. If a child wants to grow up healthily and safely into a modern citizen with independent personality and free spirit, it is very important for him or her to follow the parents who serve as their first teacher. Maybe this is the real reason why such kind of TV programs could get hot. The truth is that children will go where their parents go; and society will go where the children go.

    Eyesight（视力） plays a very important role in our daily life. Every waking moment, the eyes are working to see the world around us. Over forty percent of Americans worry about losing eyesight, but it's easy to include steps into our daily life to ensure healthy eyes. Here are five suggestions for a lifetime of healthy eyesight：

    Schedule（安排）yearly exams(检查). {#blank#}1{#/blank#} Experts advise parents to bring babies 6 to 12 months of age to the doctor for a careful check. The good news is that millions of children now can have yearly eye exams and following treatment, including eyeglasses.

    Protect against UV rays (紫外线). Long－term stay in the sun creates risk to your eyes. No matter what the season is, it's extremely important to wear sunglasses. {#blank#}2{#/blank#}

    Give your eyes a break. Two－thirds of Americans spend up to seven hours a day using computers or other digital products. {#blank#}3{#/blank#} Experts recommend that people practice the 20/20/20 rule: every 20 minutes, take a 20－second break and look at something 20 feet away.

    {#blank#}4{#/blank#} As part of a healthy diet, eat more fruits and vegetables each day. Vitamins (维生素) C and E help protect eyesight and promote eye health.

    Practice safe wear and care of contact lenses (隐形眼镜). Many Americans use contact lenses to improve their eyesight. While some follow the medical guidance for wearing contact lenses, many are breaking the rules and putting their eyesight at risk. {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Otherwise, you may have problems such as red eyes, pain in the eyes, or a more serious condition.

A．Eat your greens.

B．Eye care should begin early in life.

C．They can properly protect your eyes.

D．Stay in good shape by taking more vitamins.

E．Parents usually don't care about their own eyesight.

F．Always follow the doctor's advice for appropriate（适当的）wear.

G. This frequent eye activity increases the risk for eye tiredness.

    Grown-ups are often surprised by how well they remember something they learned as children but have never practiced ever since. A man who has not had a chance to go swimming for years can still swim as well as even when he gets back in the water. He can get on a bicycle after many years and still ride away. He can play catch and hit a ball as well as his son. A mother who has not thought about the words for years can teach her daughter the poem that begins "Twinkle, twinkle, little star" or remember the story of Cinderella or Goldilocks and the Three Bears.

    One explanation is the law of overlearning, which can be stated as follows: Once we have learned something, additional learning trials(尝试) increase the length of time we will remember it.

    In childhood we usually continue to practice such skills as swimming, bicycle riding, and playing baseball long after we have learned them. We continue to listen to and remind ourselves of words such as "Twinkle, twinkle, little star" and childhood tales such as Cinderella and Goldilocks. We not only learn but overlearn.

    The multiplication tables(乘法口诀表) are an exception(例外) to the general rule that we forget rather quickly the things that we learn in school, because they are another of the things we overlearn in childhood.

    The law of overlearning explains why cramming(突击学习)for an examination, though it may result in a passing grade, is not a satisfactory way to learn a college course. By cramming, a student may learn the subject well enough to get by on the examination, but he is likely soon to forget almost everything he learned. A little overlearning, on the other hand, is really necessary for one's future development.

    When Katie Stagliano was 9 years old, she was given a class project to grow her first cabbage from just one seed. She took it home and planted it in her home garden. It didn't even take her long to come up and begin to grow. But as friends came over, they pointed out that it was bigger than any of theirs. And it grew so much that the cabbage ended up weighing 40 pounds! Katie then decided that she could use this cabbage to do something nice for the community. So she took the huge cabbage to a local soup kitchen, where they used it, and cooked it with ham and rice. And because of her cabbage, 275 people were fed.

    She began to realize that gardening and helping people is what she likes to do most. So, she decided to start her first garden on a plot of land donated by her school.

    "I think if more kids get to experience gardening they would find out how cool it is and how many people can be fed if you donate your produce," said Katie. Now, just 9 years later, Katie is 18 years old, and has set up her own business called "Katie's Krops" with the help of her family friends.

    But this doesn't even come close to the other amazing part. She has raised over 200,000 dollars! And there are over 100 Katie's Krops within 33 states in the United States. She loves gardening and loves inspiring other children to experience the joy of gardening as well. As of today, her first garden is still doing amazing and is even responsible for supplying over 3,000 pounds of produce donated to local charities. Her goal now? To get 500 gardens across all 50 states.