What should we do when we are in a bad situation? Some may choose to give up. But is that what we should do? The following news report may get you encouraged.

    With a population of 156 million, Bangladesh has one of the largest populations in the world. What makes the situation worse is that most of the country is situated on the low-lying Ganges delta(三角洲). As a result, it often suffers flooding, especially during the rainy season from July to October. In this period, the rivers rise as much as 12 feet. In such situations, people can only get to certain places by boat.

    The problems are particularly serious in the Chalanbeel region, a poor area where people survive by farming on the rich delta soil when it is not underwater. But many parents there don't want to send their children to school and there are not enough teachers. As a result, many kids living there do not attend school on a regular basis. The problem becomes worse during the rainy season when land schools cannot be reached. Many students never return to school after the forced breaks.

    How to help students attend school regularly? 22-year-old Bangladeshi architect Mohammed Rezwan decided to take action. In 2002, the young man used $500 he had received in scholarships to start Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha. The non-profit organization's mission was to set up floating schools. It took Rezwan four years to raise enough funds to open his first boat school. But as the world began to know about the organization's worthy cause, money started to pour in. Until now, Shidhulai Swanirvar Sangstha has built 22 floating schools, some with playgrounds on the upper deck. Now a lot more children in the Chalanbeel region go to school regularly.

    We should keep in mind that there is always a solution to every problem.

    New York's iconic, blue-green statue of liberty wasn't always green. When the statue was gifted to the US from France in 1885, she was actually a shiny copper color. A new video reveals the chemical reactions involving oxygen and even air pollution that led to her color change from copper to liberty green. The statue of liberty was a gift from France to the US as a way of commemorating the US's fight for independence, as well as their own aspiration for democracy.

    A video, published by the American Chemical Society, explains that the 305-foot (93 meter) statue was built over nine years in sections of copper skin on top of an iron skeleton.

    In her first few decades in the Big Apple, the statue slowly turned from that shiny copper color to a dull brown and the, finally, to the blue-green, or as they'd say back in France, 'verdigris' we see today,' said the video's narrator.

When it changed color, some officials suggested restoring her back to her original color, but after the public protested against this decision, she was left the way she is. The statue's color change was as a result of oxidation reactions between copper and the air. But it was more than one reaction - the color change is due to about 30 years worth of different reactions leading to a mixture of greenish minerals.

    Oxidation reactions happen when an atom loses an electron to another atom.

    In the case of the statue of liberty, her color change was bound to happen due to oxygen in the atmosphere that is 'hungry' for electrons. On top of this, elements of New York City's polluted air added to the color change too.

The first chemical reaction of the color change involved copper giving up electrons to electron-hungry oxygen in the atmosphere. This led to a mineral called cuprite - which is pinkish red.

    Then, cuprite loses even more electrons to oxygen, forming a new mineral（矿物质） called tenorite, which is blackish in color. The black color of tenorite explains why the statue got darker over time, forming a dark brown color.

    Then, further chemical reactions occurred when sulfur（硫） in the atmosphere reacts with oxygen to form sulfur dioxide. Sulfur comes from natural processes such as volcanic eruptions, but also from man-made emissions from boats, cars, airplanes and factories. When sulfur dioxide in the atmosphere reacts with water, it produces sulfuric acid. Sulfuric acid forms green minerals with copper oxides, so the sulfuric acid in the atmosphere made the state green over time.

    Added to that, chloride from the sea spray surrounding Ellis Island where the statue is located made the statue even greener.

    The statue stayed this way for over 100 years because the exposed copper is now oxidized and stable, but the statue wouldn't be the same anywhere else.

    London's newest skyscraper(摩天大楼)is called the Shard and it cost about 430 million pounds to build. At a height of almost 310 meters, it is the tallest building in Europe. The Shard has completely changed the appearance of London. However, not everyone thinks that it is a change for the better.

    The Shard was designed by the famous Italian architect Renzo Piano. When he began designing the Shard for London, Piano wanted a very tall building that looked like a spire(尖顶). The sides of the building aren't regular. So the building has an unusual shape. And that is how the building got the name：the Shard. Piano says that the spire shape of the Shard is part of a great London tradition. The shape reminds him of the spires of the churches of London or the tall masts(桅杆)of the ships that were once on the river Thames.

    The Shard has 87 floors. At the moment the building is empty, but finally there will be a five-star hotel. There will also be top quality restaurants, apartments and offices.

    Before building work began, a lot of people didn't want the Shard though the plans were approved. Now they are still unhappy about the Shard. Some critics say that such a tall skyscraper might be good in a city like New York, but not in London. They say that the best thing about the Shard is its shape. But that is the only thing. There is no decoration, only flat surfaces. The Egyptians(埃及人)did that 4, 500 years ago.

    Other critics don't like what the Shard seems to represent. They say that the Shard shows how London is becoming more unequal. Only very rich people can afford to buy the expensive apartments and stay in the hotel. But the people living near the Shard are among the poorest in London. So the Shard seems a symbol of the division(分化)in society between the very rich and the poor.

    The Shard now dominates the London skyline. It is not certain, however, that ordinary London citizens will ever accept it as a valuable addition to the city.

    Kids Connect is a camp specifically for children with physical and mild intelligence disabilities aged 9-16 (Single consideration given to those over the age of 16). It is held in Blockhouse Bay, Auckland. Occasionally we require meeting a child before camp to ensure we are able to meet their needs during the camp. Acceptance is not automatic, but at the decision of the camp director.

    Our camps are conducted by experienced staff. We take every effort to give your children a safe and enjoyable weekend. Our aim is that every child comes away with lasting memories of what they have experienced, explored and enjoyed at our camp.

We focus on building strong, healthy relationships with other children (with and without physical disabilities) and with group leaders.

    We have a weekend packed full of activities, action and fun.

    Team games and competitions, songs

    Cross-country race on a wheelchair accessible track

    Motorcycling

    Process design

    Discussions, great food and loads of fun!

    The camp fee is approximately $135 (subject to change). We also accept payment by way of Ministry of Health carer support forms.

    Day visits and rates can be organized on a personal basis if a full weekend stay is unsuitable

    For a registration form or for more information, please email info@cbm.org.nz or phone 09 6305271

    Kids Connect

    Box 8774, Symonds Street Auckland 1150

    Website: www.cbm.org.nz

    Teenagers who talk on the cell phone a lot, and hold their phones up to their right ears, score worse on one type of memory test. That's the finding of a new study. That memory impairment might be one side effect of the radiation (放射线) that phones use to keep us connected while we're on the go.

    Nearly 700 Swiss teens took part in a test of figural memory. This type helps us remember abstract (抽象的) symbols and shapes, explains Milena Foerster. The teens took memory tests twice, one year apart. Each time, they had one minute to remember 13 pairs of abstract shapes. Then they were shown one item from each pair and asked to match it with one of the five choices. The study volunteers also took a test of verbal memory. That's the ability to remember words. The two memory tests are part of an intelligence test. The researchers also surveyed the teens on how they use cell phones. And they got call records from phone companies. The researchers used those records to figure out how long the teens were using their phones. This allowed the researchers to work out how big a radiation exposure (接触) each person could have got while talking.

    A phone user's exposure to the radiation can differ widely. Some teens talk on their phones more than others. People also hold their phones differently. If the phone is close to the ear, more radiation may enter the body, Foerster notes. Even the type of network signal that a phone uses can matter. Much of Switzerland was using an older "second-generation" type of cell phone networks, the study reports. Many phone carriers (通讯公司) have moved away from such networks. And more companies plan to update their networks within the next few years.

    The teens' scores in the figural memory tests were roughly the same from one year to the next. But those who normally held their phones near the right ears, and who were also exposed to higher levels of radiation, scored a little bit worse after a year. No group of teens showed big changes on the verbal memory test. Why might one type of memory be linked to cell phone use, but not another? Foerster thinks it could have to do with where different memory centers sit in the brain. The site that deals with the ability to remember shapes is near the right ear.

A good story. That's what influences our choice to buy a book the most. Right? Some of the biggest-selling novels of all time just so happened to be attached to major publishers. Indeed, any reading lover will be familiar with the countless publishing houses that have brought brilliant works to the market. So in theory, perhaps a publisher does matter. 

Every time you read a book that you enjoy, you likely look at the publisher attached to it. That name is a signal that they will produce other content that fits with that same style. It makes a lot of sense to continue to purchase texts from a company that is telling the kinds of stories that you enjoy the most. Consumer habits are thus based on trust that a publisher will be consistent in the books they deliver and that investing time in them is more reliable than an untested source.

The strength of the author themselves can also play into that. After all, well-liked authors are often signed to a book deal with a select few publishers, strengthening the brand further. 

Of course, a publisher would be nothing without its logo, which is a major call-to-arms for all fans of the brand. The top publishers in the world instantly recognizable imagery, which catch the attention while summing up the name of a brand in an instant. That thus builds our association with a given name. The fun penguin shape of Penguin Random House is so iconic, for example, that it could not be confused with any other publishing business.

There might be a place for those indie (独立经营的) book companies, with occasional stories breaking through and forcing people to take notice. In truth that's far less common than you expect. Expert Cassandra Davis, however, provides a hopeful insight. "Indie bookshops are more likely to stock an indie publisher's books, especially if the author is local to the bookshop." She says. Therefore, supporting local bookshops is a vital way to keep the indie industry alive and change these trends.