Your New Year's plan to move more is one of the toughest to stick to, and a group of scientists working with obese(过度肥胖的) mice think they're starting to understand why

    Rather than our sedentary(久坐的) lives causing weight gain, says Alexxai Kraviz, the National Institutes of Health neuroscientist who led the study, changes in brain chemistry after we start gaining weight affect our capacity to move.

    “Obses mice can move just fine,” says Kravitz, who published the work with his team in Cell Metabolism “They just don't.”

    What Kravitz's team found is that the activity of a particular dopamine(多巴胺) receptor linked to movement goes down as mice gain weight on a high-fat diet. So the nice slow down and they move less. And when the researchers restored the activity of that dopamine receptor—DR2—the mice started moving more, even though they were still obese. The team also saw that lean mice missing the DR2 receptor acted like obese mice. This is the target, says Kravitz—restoring that dopamine receptor function. “Maybe 20 or 30 years down the road, we could do that in people,” he says.

    And there is one more thing: The scientists fed normal mice and the mice lacking DR2 the same high-fat diet. Both sets of mice gained weight at the same rate.

    Kravitz says this is important because mice lacking DR2 move less from the get-go, whereas a normal mouse takes a little time to start seeing that dopamine receptor-related loss of exercise. The ability to exercise seems to be disconnected from weight gain, he says.

    “Exercise is a healthy thing to do, but its impact on weight loss has been exaggerated,” he says. “We have to be realistic about the size of the effect of exercise on weight, as opposed to health benefits.”

    Still, before you abandon your New Year's exercise plan, keep in mind that this study was done using a high-fat diet, and not the normal calorie restriction that people maintain when they diet.

    That's a big drawback to the work, says Vicki Vieira-Potter, a University of Missouri physiologist not involved in the study.

    “They feed the mice with high-fat diet, it damages the receptor, and that decreases activity. Those who plan to lost weight should remember high-fat diet is a nice way to cause obesity in the lab, but it's not the same as the normal situation of obesity,” she says.

    Sine also says that a lot of the weight gain in the mice came after they stopped moving around, which indicates that the loss of movement did impact obesity.

    During the cold winter days, there are some interesting festivals in the world. Look at the following ones.

Harbin Ice and Snow Festival

Place: China

Time: January 5 to February 5

People build incredible things out of ice and snow, decorating them with lights.

The Carnival of Venice

Place: Italy

Time: between February and March

One of the most beautiful festivals in the world, people wear masks and elaborate costumes to hide differences among classes, and there an, contests for the best costumes.

Holi Festival

Place: India

Time: late February/March, on, the last full moon day and Sikhs, in India, Nepal, and Sri Lanka celebrate the main day of this incredibly fun 16 -day festival by throwing colored powder and water at each other.

Sundance Film Festival

Place: Utah, the US

Time: end of February

The largest independent film festival in the US. Watch both feature films and shorts. You need to buy a ticket.

    Take part in one of these FUN summer camps.ID Tech Camps offer weeklong courses at locations throughout the US.Our junior courses provide additional time for off-computer activities,ensuring a well-balanced day.Learn from instructors who are passionate about technology.There is a maximum of just 8 students per instructor.Just choose a course.

    Adventures in Games Design

    Ages: 7-10

    Dates: July 1-July 7

    Cost: $520

    Don't just play games!Make them!Create your own video game in this fun,exciting video game camp for kids. Design your own arcade or platform game using professional software.Take breaks to play sports outside and do other activities.

    Adventures in Programming

    Ages: 7-13

    Date: July 4-July 10

    Cost: $750

    Let your imagination run wild in this multimedia adventure.Create your own interactive stories,animated adventures and creative comics.Learn drag-and-drop programming basics with scratch (a project of the MIT Media Lab).Computer characters are at your command!Take breaks with supervised outside sports and activities.

    Adventures in Robotics

    Ages: 12-15

    Date: July 4-July 10

    Cost: $1,200

    Imagine it,build it and watch it go!Powered by the LEGO MINDSTORMS Education NXT Base Set and Software,our Adventures in Robotics course explores the exciting world of robots!This course will have you create cool robots on your first day.

    Introduction to Web Design & Photography

    Ages: 9-12

    Date: July 14-July 20

    Cost: $700

    Use a high-end camera and learn the building blocks of web design with Adobe Dreamweaver.Put your photos into your basic website,and then share your creation with your friends and family.The software Adobe Flash may be introduced based on a student's progress throughout the week.

Movie Making Camp

    Ages: 12-15

    Date: July 14-July 20

    Cost: $1,8000

    Are you ready to learn the basics of filming and editing?

    Shoot with professional cameras and see how much fun creative editing can be with the video editor iMovie. Take home a DVD of your final project to show your family.Please remember it takes filmmakers years to master their skills.Please have realistic project expectations.

    Some of the people who created many popular apps are telling kids to put their phones away — at least, a bit more often. The Center for Humane Technology is made up of people who used to work for big tech companies like Google, Facebook and Twitter. Now they want kids to stop using those apps and websites so much.

    In early February, the center started a campaign called The Truth About Tech. Its goal is to teach students, parents and teachers about the dangers of spending too much time on smart phones and computers.

    According to studies about kids and technology, more than 95 percent of elementary school-aged children spend at least part of every day using a computer or smart phone. About 78 percent of teens check their phones every hour, and more than half of them sleep with their phones in case they get a call or message during the night.

    The Center for Humane Technology says that the apps and websites we use every day are purposely designed to keep us chatting, playing or watching online as much as possible. That includes social media like Snapchat, Instagram, Facebook and Twitter, websites like YouTube and online games. It also says that the tech companies talk only about the good aspects of their products and don't mention the side effects.

    Some physical problems, like headaches, eyestrain (眼疲劳), and neck pain are caused by using phones or computers too much. Students spending too much time online may find it hard to be focused on school work. Children and teenagers are more likely to have these problems because their brains, bodies and social skills are still developing.

    One goal of The Truth About Tech campaign is to make sure that kids understand how technology affects them so they can make better decisions. The people behind the campaign also want governments and the tech companies themselves to take steps to protect children. When the leaders of the big technology companies are designing tech tools for kids, they should think about what they would want for their own children.

    As advances in auto-technology have placed a huge number of self-driving machines on our roads and sidewalks, a side product has materialized in recent years: robot-babysitting.

    In Phoenix, human attendants will remotely monitor Google's upcoming Waymo robot-taxis, using the cars cameras to evaluate and adapt to passenger or road challenges. State safety regulations typically require that auto-vehicles be accompanied at all times by humans. These professionals' job titles range from "robot handler" to "safety driver," but they have essentially the same responsibilities: monitoring robot behavior for safety and performance, and answering questions about the technology. Broadly speaking, robot-babysitting jobs fall under the umbrella of careers in automation, which include maintenance, engineering, and programming.

    However, some observers note that certain kinds of robot-babysitting –-- the kind that is boring and doesn't require much education –-- can make for thankless work. The safety drivers who sit in self-driving cars have described their roles as" exhausting" and "demanding," and many told me about the constant pressure to stay vigilant at all times. "It's incredibly hard to sit in a chair and stare at a computer without doing anything for eight hours," Ramsey said. "But you do not need a Ph.D. to do it." In March 2018, the field of robot babysitting took a beating when a self-driving Uber in Tempe, Arizona, hit a 49-year old named Elaine Herzberg. Dashcam footage showed that Rafaela Vasquez, the car's safety driver, had not been looking at the road when the accident occurred. Investigators are deciding if Vasquez will be charged with murder.

    According to the McKinsey Global Institute, 10 million to 800 million jobs globally could be lost to automation by 2030. In the long term, it's inevitable that robot-babysitters will go the way of elevator operators and lamplighters. But they'll also birth new robot-related roles." A huge number of jobs will be created as auto-vehicles are loosed into the environment,” Ramsey said. In 2016, Bosch started training students from Schoolcraft College, a community college in Michigan, in auto-vehicle repair: Toyota has trained students in maintenance as well. "We might even see a return to low-level jobs where people come and fuel the car for you," Ramsey said. "Until we can wirelessly charge, someone needs to refuel them.” The hardest-to-automate industries, as it happens, are the ones that require looking after humans: childcare, education, health-care aides. Robot babysitters might feel like they have gained the job of the future. But in fact, real babysitters might be better positioned.

Museums for career-minded kids

    Sometimes kids don't just want to be kids. They want to be grown-ups. Here are some places where kids can try on a few different hats.

    The Nassau County Firefighters Museum

    This museum shows kids what to do in fires, such as how to crawl (爬行) low in smoke. It also exhibits (展览) out-of-date and modern fire equipment.

    10 a. m. to 5 p. m. Tuesdays through Sundays, and Mondays on holidays and school breaks. Open seven days in July and August. $4 for children up to 12 and adults over 62; $5 for all others. 516-572-4177.

    The Heckscher Museum of Art

    Kids can create artwork based on exhibits in the Central Gallery, using virtual (虛拟的) paint on a 55-inch touch screen.

    10 a. m. to 5 p. m. Wednesdays through Fridays, 11 a. m. to 5 p. m. Saturdays and Sundays. Closed for exhibition change from Nov. 12 to 16. $5 for students 10 and over: free for kids under 10; $8 for adults. 631-351-3250 .

    The Cradle of Aviation Museum

    An exhibit on space exploration includes an early Space Age rocket copy, a moon lander, and a moon simulator (模拟装置) that trained the Apollo astronauts.

    9: 30 a. m. to-p. m. Tuesdays through Sundays, and open Mondays that fall on holidays and school breaks. $13 for kids up to 12 and adults over 62; $15 for all others. 516-572-4111 .

    The Mighty Midgets Mini Cars Museum

    This museum exhibits a wide collection of small gas and electric cars and trucks. The sizes are perfect for your kids, some of which they can sit in, including a Corvette and a Formula 1 race car.

    By appointment (预约) Mondays through Thursdays and noon to 4 p.m. Fridays through Sundays Free for kids 5 and under; $5 for all others. 631-803-8588 .