Someday in the future we may not need to have money in our pockets. Is life easier when people don't need to carry any money at all? Is money heavy tocarry? Is it safe to carry money? Maybe in the future each of us will have onlyone small credit card(信用卡). We will use it instead of money to buy all the things. 

    Of course we may still have some of the same problems with cards we nowhave with money. For example, we lose money from time to time. Maybe we willlose the cards. Maybe someone will take the cards. Someone may even make a card that looks like our cards. Since we can't buy anything without our cards, the credit cards may be no better than money.

    Is there something easier to use than credit cards? Each of us has athumbprint(拇指指纹). No two thumbprints are the same. Maybe someday the government will keep people's thumbprints with a number. When you want to buy something, you will put your thumb on a machine or a computer. Each store or business will possesone. Everyone's thumbprints will be in the computer. It will be difficult to lose our thumbprints! It will be difficult for someone to steal it or to make one like it.

    Recently, a designer in Hong Kong has invented a special book that can transform (变形) into a piece of furniture. The special book is called Bookniture. It can be unfolded to become a chair or a small table. People can either carry it around for a portable (轻便的) chair or can store it in their homes to use as extra furniture.

    The book was designed by Mike Mak. He came up with the idea after never having enough seats for his friends in his home in Hong Kong.

    “I love having friends at my place, but I have never had enough seats for everyone—we would always end up with just sitting on the floor. 1 really want a seat that doesn't take up any floor space when I don't need it. One day, the empty space on my bookcase drew my attention.  Then came the new idea—Bookniture, furniture hidden in a book,” said the 30-year-old designer.

    Made from fully-recyclable kraft paper (牛皮纸) , the book measures 33 cm by 18 cm. It expands (扩大) to 14 times bigger once it's opened, and can support up 10 1,000 kg of weight.  It comes in two colors, brown and black, and can be bought for between￡55 and ￡57.

    Virtual (虚拟的)reality is a way to create a computer-made environment that brings the user into a virtual world. If you ever have put on a VR headset, you would know exactly what I am talking about. From an experiential view we do understand the idea, but what about the technical backend that goes into making it all possible? In this blog, we will understand the technology behind virtual reality and the basic terms about the development of a virtual ecosystem for a VR headset.

    The primary subject of virtual reality is simulating (模拟)the vision. Every headset is to perfect their method to create an immersive (浸人式)3D environment. Each VR headset puts up a screen or two in front of eyes, keeping the user away from any interaction with the real world. Two autofocus lenses (自动对焦镜片)are generally placed between the screen and the eyes that change based on eye movement and positioning. The vision appears on the screen either by using a mobile phone or HDMI line connected to a PC.

    To create a truly immersive virtual reality, there are certain requirements a frame rate (帧 率)of at least 60 fps, a refresh rate and at least 100﹣degree field of view (though 180 degrees is perfect). If either of these doesn't work according to the standards, the user will experience too big of a time difference between their actions and the response from the screen. We need the response to be less than 20 ms (1/1000 second) to fool the brain which is achieved by joining all the above in the right proportion (比例).Another matter that needs to be looked at here is to prevent netsickness because of the differences between the frame rate and refresh rate.

    Apart from the image, there are certain other things that go into creating an immersive VR experience, holding the user's attention completely in the virtual environment. For example, sound effects, when put with the image, can create very attractive effects. By using a headphone and 3D sound effects, the user can totally believe in the virtual environment. While perfecting sound effects, proper care needs to be taken about the consistency (一致)between the pictures and the sound. If you start playing frightening music in the background of a happy scene, it will just put the user off.

    In future, we will see rapid progress in creating a truly immersive digital experience. With leading players like Google, Microsoft, Oculus, and HTC making great efforts to improve the capabilities (性能),we are not far from achieving a virtual reality that would feel so much better than the real world. If you would like to develop a VR app for your business, then feel free to get in touch. With over 10 years of experience in mobile technologies, we can make every dream a reality.

    What should you do if there's an earthquake at school? How can you protect yourself when you are caught in a stampede(踩踏)?March 28, 2016 provided you with a good chance to learn about safety.

    This day was called the National Day of Education on the Safety of Elementary and Middle School Students(NDESEMSS)(全国中小学生安全教育日). The theme of the day was to give students more knowledge about safety and make sure their lives are safe.

    A survey done by the China Youth and Children Research Center showed that school accidents kill more elementary and middle school students than anything else. The main accidents come from stampedes, earthquakes, fires and sports injuries(伤害).

    What can we do to keep ourselves safe? Staying calm is the first and most important rule when facing accidents. But different accidents have different self-protection advice.

    A stampede is possible anywhere. The larger a crowd gets, the more likely stampedes become. When students around you begin to push, stand still and try to hold onto something, or stay in a corner until the crowd leaves. If you fall down in a moving crowd, cover your head with both hands. Lean to(偏向) one side, curl up(蜷缩) your body and bend your legs.

    Earthquakes are common natural disasters(灾难). When you feel the ground shake, drop down, take cover under a desk and hold on. You should stay indoors until the shaking stops. If you are outdoors, don't stay near buildings, trees or power lines.

    When there's a fire, follow the teachers' instructions, leave the classroom quickly and use a piece of wet cloth to cover your mouth and nose so that you don't breathe in smoke.

The Giraffe

    The giraffe is the tallest modern land animal. It can be over 5. 5 meters tall. Its neck bone may be 1. 9 meters long. Yet the giraffe has only seven bones in its neck, the same number as in the human. Even a small bird has many more bones in its neck than in a tall giraffe. Each bone in a giraffe's neck is very long, while the bones in a human's neck are small. That makes the difference. A female giraffe gives birth to one baby at a time. The baby, called a calf, is about 1. 9 meters tall at birth. By the age of eight it is full-grown. The giraffe can live for 30 years; the giraffe is good at running; it can run 30 kilometers per hour. The giraffe likes to live together, usually 7~10 a group. The giraffe eats mostly leaves. Because it has a long neck, it can reach the leaves high up on the trees.

    Imagine one day, the water taps (水龙头) in your house stop running. You have to buy water from shops. And still there isn't enough for everyone. Your mother has to save the family's shower water to do other things. Would you be able to stand that kind of life?

    Probably not. But that's what kids in Yemen are experiencing. Experts said Yemen is going to be the first country in the world to run out of water. According to a report, the capital, Sana, will run out of drinking water as early as 2025.

    Because of the shortage, the government often cuts the water supply(供应). Hannan, an 18-year-old from Lahej, told Times, "In a good week we'll have a water supply all week. But then the following week there will be water only for a day or two."

    Hannan said only rich people have enough water to use. They can buy water from the shops or from the water trucks. Private companies own the trucks. They travel around the city every day to sell water—at very high prices. "A lot of people can't afford it," she said.

    The average(平均) person in Yemen uses 100 to 200 cubic(立方) meters of water per year. That is far below the international water poverty(贫困) line of 1,000 cubic meters.

    The government is thinking of making use of seawater. But it will cost a lot and it may not happen soon enough to help the people of Yemen.