The Asian elephant has been respected for centuries and is still used today for ceremonies and religious purposes. It is respected, not only because it plays a role in Asian culture and religion, but also because it is a key biological species in the tropical forests of Asia.

    The Asian elephant is the largest land mammal in Asian. It is smaller than the African elephant, with relatively smaller ears. Asian elephants have a single “finger” on the upper lip of the long trunk, while African elephants have a second on the lower tip. A number of adult male Asian elephants have no tooth, and the percentage of males carrying ivory(象牙）is different from only about 5% in Sri Lanka to 90% in south India. Asian elephants keep their ears in constant motion in order to free the heat they produce. The species is reported to have well-developed hearing, vision, and smell , and they are also fine swimmers.

    Asian elephants prefer to convey something to form groups surrounding 6 to 7 related females that are led by the oldest female. Like African elephants, these groups occasionally join others to form herds, although these associations are relatively temporary.

    More than two thirds of the day may be spent feeding on grasses, but large amounts of tree bark, roots, leaves and small stems are also eaten. Crops such as bananas, rice and sugar plants are favored foods. Besides, they need to drink at least twice a day so the source of water is quite important.

    The Asian elephant used to live from modern Irap and Syria to the Yellow River in China at first, but it is now found only from India to Vietnam, with a tiny population in the extreme southwest of China's Yunnan Province. More than 100,000 Asian elephants may have existed at the start of the 20^th century. The population is estimated to have fallen by at least 50% over the last 60-75 years.

    The Things Successful People Do Differently

    Why have you been so successful in reaching some of your goals, but not others? If you aren't sure, you are far from alone in your confusion. It turns out that even brilliant, highly accomplished people are pretty lousy when it comes to understanding why they succeed or fail. The intuitive(直觉的) answer--that you are born with certain talents and lacking in others--is really just one small piece of the puzzle. In fact, decades of research on achievement suggests that successful people reach their goals not simply because of who they are, but more often because of what they do.

    1）Get specific.

    When you set yourself a goal, try to be as specific as possible. “Lose 5 pounds” is a better goal than “lose some weight,” because it gives you a clear idea of what success looks like. Knowing exactly what you want to achieve keeps you motivated until you get there. Also, think about the specific actions that need to be taken to reach your goal. Just promising you'll “eat less” or “sleep more” is too vague--be clear and precise. “I'll be in bed by 10pm on weeknights” leaves no room for doubt about what you need to do, and whether or not you've actually done it.

    2）Seize the moment to act on your goals.

    To seize the moment, decide in advance when and where you will take each action you want to take. Again, be as specific as possible (e.g., “If it's Monday, Wednesday, or Friday, I'll work out for 30 minutes before work.”) Studies show that this kind of planning will help your brain to detect and seize the opportunity when it arises, increasing your chances of success by roughly 300%.

    3）Know exactly how far you have left to go.

     Achieving any goal also requires honest and regular monitoring of your progress--if not by others, then by you yourself. If you don't know how well you are doing, you can't adjust your behavior or your strategies accordingly. Check your progress frequently--weekly, or even daily, depending on the goal.

    When traveling in England, here are some things to keep in mind.

    When taking the underground in England, once on the underground train, stand clear of the closing doors. They can give you a pretty hurtful knock if they hit you. When getting on or off the tube train, make sure you mind the gap(缝隙)! This varies from a few inches to a foot at some of the stations.

    The saying that English food is boring and tasteless isn't true, at least not anymore. You'll find a huge variety of international restaurants, especially in London. Make sure you eat some of the old-fashioned traditional foods in pubs, and wash it down with some local beer!

    Come prepared for any sort of weather ——even if the day starts off well, it's likely that the temperature will change. The best thing to do is layer(分层穿套) your clothes so that you can add or reduce as necessary.

    The British are in general very polite people and will expect at least basic politeness from travelers. Pleases and thanks go a long way! At the same time  they like playing jokes on others. Don't be surprised or offended if you're called darling, dear, dearie, flower, love, chick, chuck, me duck, son, ma'am or any other similar pet name by someone you don't know. It's quite normal.

    England is generally quite safe, but you'll need to be more careful in London and the other large cities, especially at night. Choose an underground train that has plenty of people in it and avoid suburban underground stations at night. There are many night buses you can catch, but try not to do this alone. A licensed cab is often the best choice. Try and leave valuable things in your hotel room, as pickpockets(扒手) do operate in some areas. Be careful of bags especially when in some busy areas.

    A retired United States soldier named Terry McGlade, who had served in Iraq and Afghanistan, his dog Major is a hero. He is specially trained to says sense when McGlade is about to have a seizure, get his phone and dial 911 for help.

    When Major had recently sensed an incident about to happen, and McGlade collapsed and hit the floor, Major was able to get to McGlade's phone, and more or less bite on the phone which is specially set up so that when multiple buttons are pressed and held in, it goes into emergency call mode, and dial 911.

    "He was actually able to get my phone out of my pocket," McGlade said.

    The 911 operators who got the call from Major said they never heard him bark or anything. However, they could hear what sounded like a confused man in the background, and did get quite suspicious after quite a few calls from McGlade's cell phone kept coming in. Quite clearly, Major was using his leg and also stepping on the screen to get the phone to díal for help.

    After Major was sure someone would be on their way to help, he then made his way out to the front of the house to wait. When police and ambulance arrived, he led them into the house and right to McGlade, still in distress.

    "I probably would have been in severe trouble if he wouldn't have called," McGlade said.

    McGlade was taken to the hospital, where he was kept overnight for observation, but thanks to his best friend, and now hero of the day, Major. He is feeling much better, and will make a full recovery with little risk of lasting damage from this particular incident.

    Want to explore new cultures, meet new people and do something worthwhile at the same time? You can do all the three with Global Development Association(GDA). Whatever stage of life you're at, wherever you go and whatever project you do in GDA, you'll create positive changes in a poor and remote community(社区).

    We work with volunteers of all ages and backgrounds. Most of our volunteers are aged 17-24. Now we need volunteer managers aged 25-75. They are extremely important in the safe and effective running of our programmes. We have such roles as project managers, mountain leaders, and communication officers.

    Depending on which role you choose, you could help to increase a community's access to safe drinking water, or help to protect valuable local cultures. You might also design an adventure challenge to train young volunteers.

    Not only will you help our young volunteers to develop personally, you'll also learn new skills and increase your cultural awareness. You may have chances to meet new people who'll become your lifelong friends.

    This summer we have both 4-week and 7-week programmes:

    GDA ensures that volunteers work with community members and local project partners where our help is needed. All our projects aim to promote the development of poor and remote communities.

    There is no other chance like a GDA programme. Join us as a volunteer manager to develop your own skills while bringing benefits to the communities.

    Find out more about joining a GDA programme:

    Website:www.glodeve.org

    Email:humanresources@glodeve.org