New research has found that even if you give up smoking,the damage it has done to your genes（基因）will stay there for a much longer time.

    In the research,a team of US scientists studied the blood of 16,000 people.Among them,some were smokers,some used to smoke,and the rest were non-smokers.Scientists compared their genes and found that more than 7,000 genes of smokers had changed-a number that is one-third of known human genes.

    According to NBC News,both heart disease and cancer are caused by genetic changes.Some people may have had the changes when they were born,but most people get them in their day-to-day lives while doing things like  smoking.

When you stop smoking,a lot of these genes will return to normal within five years.This means your body is trying to heal（治愈）itself of the harmful effects of smoking.But the changes in some of the genes stay for longer.They can stay for as long as 30 years.It's almost like leaving a footprint on wet cement（水泥）一it will always be there, even when you've walked away and when the cement becomes dry.

    Although the study results may make people unhappy,there is a bright side: the findings could help scientists invent medicine to treat genetic damage caused by smoking or find ways to tell which people have heart disease or cancer ricks.

    Phil White has just returned from an 18,000 ­mile, around­ the ­world bicycle trip. White had two reasons for making this epic journey. First of all, he wanted to use the trip to raise money for charity, which he did. He raised ￡70,000 for the British charity, Oxfam. White's second reason for making the trip was to break the world record and become the fastest person to cycle around the world. He is still waiting to find out if he has broken the record or not.

    White set off from Trafalgar Square, in London, on 19th June 2004 and was back 299 days later. He spent more than 1,300 hours in the saddle (车座) and destroyed four sets of tyres and three bike chains. He had the adventure of his life crossing Europe, the Middle East, India, Asia, Australia, New Zealand and the Americas. Amazingly, he did all of this with absolutely no support team. No jeep carrying food, water and medicine. No doctor. Nothing! Just a bike and a very, very long road.

    The journey was lonely and desperate at times. He also had to fight his way across deserts, through jungles and over mountains. He cycled through heavy rains and temperatures of up to 45 degrees, all to help people in need. There were other dangers along the road. In Iran, he was chased by armed robbers and was lucky to escape with his life and the little money he had. The worst thing that happened to him was having to cycle into a headwind on a road that crosses the south of Australia. For 1,000 kilometres he battled against the wind that was constantly pushing him. This part of the trip was slow, hard work and depressing, but he made it in the end. Now Mr. White is back and intends to write a book about his adventures.

    You know the feeling-you have left your phone at home and feel anxious, as if you have lost your connection to the world. "Nomophobia" (无手机恐惧症) affects teenagers and adults alike. You can even do an online test to see if you have it. Last week, researchers from Hong Kong warned that nomophobia is infecting everyone. Their study found that people who use their phones to store, share and access personal memories suffer most. When users were asked to describe how they felt about their phones, words such as "hurt" (neck pain was often reported) and "alone" predicted higher levels of nomophobia.

    "The findings of our study suggest that users regard smartphones as their extended selves and get attached to the devices," said Dr. Kim Ki Joon. "People experience feelings of anxiety and unpleasantness when separated from their phones." Meanwhile, an American study shows that smartphone separation can lead to an increase in heart rate and blood pressure.

    So can being without your phone really give you separation anxiety? Professor Mark Griffiths, psychologist and director of the International Gaming Research Unit at Nottingham Trent University, says it is what is on the phone that counts-the social networking that creates Fomo (fear of missing out).

    "We are talking about an internet-connected device that allows people to deal with lots of aspects of their lives," says Griffiths. "You would have to surgically remove a phone from a teenager because their whole life is rooted in this device."

    Griffiths thinks attachment theory, where we develop emotional dependency on the phone because it holds details of our lives, is a small part of nomophobia. For "screenagers", it is Fomo that creates the most separation anxiety. If they can't see what's happening on Snapchat or Instagram, they become panic-stricken about not knowing what's going on socially. "But they adapt very quickly if you take them on holiday and there's no internet," says Griffiths.

    Sometimes you'll hear people say that you can't love others until you love yourself. Sometimes you'll hear people say that you can't expect someone else to love you until you love yourself. Either way, you've got to love yourself first and this can be tricky. Sure we all know that we're the apple of our parents' eyes, and that our Grandmas think we're great talents and our Uncle Roberts think that we will go to the Olympics. But sometimes it's a lot harder to think such nice thoughts about ourselves. If you find that believing in yourself is a challenge, it is time you should build a positive self-image and learn to love yourself.

    Self-image is your own mind's picture of yourself. This image includes the way you look, the way you act, the way you talk and the way you think. Interestingly, our self-images are often quite different from the images others hold about US. Unfortunately, most of these images are more negative than they should be. Thus changing the way you think about yourself is the key to changing your self-image and your whole world.

    The best way to defeat a passive self-image is to step back and decide to stress your successes. That is, make a list if you need to, but write down all of the great things you do every day. Don't allow doubts to occur in it.

    It very well might be that you are experiencing a negative self-image because you can't move past one flaw or weakness that you see about yourself. Well, roll up your sleeves and make a change of it as your primary task. If you think you're silly because you aren't good at math, find a tutor. If you think you're weak because you can't run a mile, get to the track and practice. If you think you're dull because you don't wear the latest trends, buy a few new clothes. But remember, just because you think it doesn't mean it's true.

    The best way to get rid of a negative self-image is to realize that your image is far from objective, and to actively convince yourself of your positive qualities. Changing the way you think and working on those you need to improve will go a long way towards promoting a positive self-image. When you can pat (拍) yourself on the back, you'll know you're well on your way. Good luck!

    People who sleep fewer than six hours a night are more likely to die early, researchers in University of Warwick have found in a recent study. They discovered that people who slept for less than six hours each night were 12% more likely to die before the age of 65 than those who slept the recommended six to eight hours a night.

    The researchers pointed out that previous studies had shown that the lack of sleep was associated with problems like heart disease and high blood pressure. However, the researchers also found that sleeping too much was linked to an early death. Those who slept for more than nine hours a night were 30% more likely to die early, as an article in the latest Sleep suggested. That directly contradicts another passage in the same journal last month suggesting that people who slept for ten hours or longer a night were more likely to live to 100. This was thought to be because people who lived into extreme old age were healthier and therefore slept better.

    However, the authors of the latest research contradicted this and suggested that long sleep was a sign of underlying illnesses such as depression and low levels of physical activity. Professor Francesco Cappuccio at the University of Warwick said: "While short sleep may represent a cause of ill-health, long sleep is believed to represent more an indicator of ill-health."

    He also mentioned: "Modern society has seen a gradual reduction in the average amount of sleep people take, and this pattern is more common among full-time workers, suggesting that it may be due to social pressures for longer working hours. On the other hand, the worsening of our health is often accompanied by an extension of our sleeping time."

    "Consistently sleeping six to eight hours per night may be good for health. However, whether to achieve the goal depends on various factors such as the environment as well as measures of public health aimed at favourable changes of the working environments," Professor Francesco Cappuccio added.

    An elderly carpenter was ready to retire. He told his employer of his plans to leave the house building business and enjoy his late life.

    The employer was sorry to see his good worker go and asked if he could build just one more house as a personal favor. The carpenter said yes, but in time it was easy to see that his heart was not in his work. He did his job carelessly and used inferior materials. It was an unfortunate way to end his career.

    When the carpenter finished his work, the employer came to examine the house and handed the front-door key to the carpenter. "This is your house," he said, "my gift to you."

    What a shock! What a shame! If he had only known he was building his own house, he would have done it all so differently. Now he had to live in the home he had built none too well.

    So it is with us. We build our lives in a distracted way, reacting rather than acting, willing to put up less than the best. At important points we do not give the job our best effort. Then with a shock we look at the situation we have created and find that we are now living in the house we have built. If we had realized, we would have done it differently.

    Think of yourself as the carpenter. Think about your house. Each day you hammer a nail, place a board, or build a wall. Build wisely. It is the only life you will ever build. Even if you live it for only one day more, that day deserves to be lived well. The plaque (匾牌) on the wall says, "Life is a do-it-yourself project."

    Who could say it more clearly? Your life today is the result of your attitudes and choices in the past. Your life tomorrow will be the result of your attitudes and the choices you make today.