The deadliest Ebola(埃博拉病毒) outbreak inrecorded history is happening right now. The outbreak is unprecedented(空前的) both in the number of people who have gotten sick and in the geographic scope. And so farit's been a long battle that doesn't appear to be slowing down.

    Ebola is both rare and very deadly. Since the first outbreak in 1976, Ebola viruses have infected thousands of people and killed roughly killed 60 percent of them. Symptoms can come on quickly and kill fast.

    The current outbreak started in Guinea sometime in late 2013 orearly 2014. It has since spread to Sierra Leone and Liberia, including somecapital cities. And one infected patient traveled on a plane to Nigeria, where he spread the disease to several others and then died. Cases have also popped up in various other countries throughout the world, including in Dallas and NewYork City in the United States.

    The Ebola virus has now hit many countries, including Guinea, Liberia, Sierra Leone, Nigeria, Senegal, and the United States. The virus, which starts off with flu-like symptoms and sometimes ends with bleeding, has infected about 6,500 people and killed more than 3,000 since this winter, according to the World Health Organization on September 30, 2014.

    There are some social and political factors contributing to the current disaster. Because this is the first major Ebola outbreak in WestAfrica, many of the region's health workers didn't have experience or trainingin how to protect themselves or care for patients with this disease.

    Journalist David Quammen put it well in a recent New York Timesarticle, “Ebola is more dangerous to humans than perhaps any known virus on Earth, except rabies(狂犬病) and HIV. Andit does its damage much faster than either.”

    Hopefully, researchers are working to find drugs, including a recent $50 million push at the National Institutes of Health. And scientists are working on vaccines(疫苗), including looking into ones that might be able to help wild chimpanzees, which are also susceptible to the disease. The first human Ebola vaccine trial is scheduled to start in the spring of 2015.

    No one enjoys hearing the sound of someone else chewing their food. Most of the time, though, it's not that big a deal but a minor annoyance.

    But for a small group of people with misophonia (恐音症), the sound can be painful, causing extreme anger and deep discomfort. The most ordinary sounds of chewing and breathing can drive them crazy. Past attempts to explain the causes of misophonia have suggested everything from compulsive disorder to an easily-annoyed personality—but according to a study published yesterday in the journal CurrentBiology, the true criminal is the structure of the brain.

    For the study, a team of researchers led by Newcastle University neuroscientist Sukhbinder Kumar recruited (招募) 42 volunteers, of whom around half had extreme misophonia and the other half served as the control group, and played them several different noises: some ordinary; some harsh, like the sound of a person screaming; and some that were ordinary for the control group but known to be annoying for misophonics, people with misophonia, like the sound of breathing. As the participants listened, the researchers monitored them for signs of anxiety, both physical symptoms and behavioral expressions, and observed their brain activity using FMRI scans.

    The only significant difference in reaction between the two groups happened, during the misophonia-specific sounds, when those with the condition showed physical changes that suggested they were entering fight-or-flight mode.

    Misophonics had increased activity in the AIC, an area known to play a central role in the system that determines which things we should pay attention to. When the trigger sounds were played, there was not only more activity in this region but also abnormally high levels of connection to other regions.

    Misophonia, in other words, may be a result of misplaced attention the brain of a misophonic focuses on things that other people normally tune out (不予理会). On a related note, on behalf of misophonics and manners-minded moms everywhere: Please, chew with your mouth closed.

Singapore's public transport system is one of the best in the world, so you should have no problem finding your way around like a local. There are three main forms of public transport that you would find in any major city here — trains, buses and taxis.

    TRAINS

    Trains run from 6: 00 am to midnight. Single trip tickets start at 80 cents. If you buy an EZ-Link card for $15, you can ride the trains and buses as you like. If you need more information, just call Transit Link at 1800 767 4333.

    BUSES

    There are several bus services in Singapore and fares start at 80 cents. Be sure always to ask the driver the cost of your ticket as he cannot give change.

    If you need help, just call Transit Link at 1800 767 4333.

    TAXIS

    There are three main taxi companies-City Cab, Comfort and Tibs. Booking can also be easy by calling the numbers listed above.

    RENTAL CARS

    Driving in Singapore is a pleasure and if you like to travel at your own pace, renting a car is a good choice. Renting takes away the hassle of getting to places around Singapore. Just sit back and enjoy the city. It also means you'll get to see a lot more that a train or a bus won't let you see.

    For car rental, call Avis at +65 6737 1668.

    It was one of those days when there was way too much to do. I had fallen behind in most of my household chores.

    After breakfast, I sat down at the computer to write an article. My youngest daughter, Julia, walked toward me. "But, Mommy, I thought we were going to do something fun today," she said. "Since it's our day off from school." "I know it's your day off, but it's not Mommy's day off," I explained.

    "Can you play a game with me?" she begged. "Like Candy Land? Or beauty shop?" I sighed. I really didn't have time to play. I desperately needed to get some work done. But then I had an idea. "Can we play beauty shop while I work?" So I got my article done, and my toenails(脚趾甲) painted at the same time. My oldest, Austin, volunteered to fix lunch so I could keep working. Shortly after lunch, we went to the grocery store and I got what I needed. Back at home, the kids decided to play "grocery store". For the remainder of the afternoon, I cleaned house, folded laundry, and started dinner. The kids continued with their game until my husband, Eric, walked through the door.

    He saw me and smiled. "So how was the kids' big day off today?" I began to explain that we hadn't done anything special. But my two middle kids, Jordan and Lea interrupted me. They told their dad, "We had such a special day today, Dad! It was a blast!" I looked at my children's faces. They were lit up with excitement.

    I nodded, realizing how right he was. Happiness is far more about our attitude than our circumstances. I hugged my kids and thanked them for reminding me to look for happiness in the little things. Julia smiled and said, "And the little things that make you the happiest are us, right, Mommy?" Wow, my kids sure are smart.

Internet time tied to teen depression(抑郁) symptoms

    Spending time online is normal behaviour for teenagers. But too much Internet use by teens —or too little, for that matter —might be related to depression, a new study finds.

    The findings, reported in the journal of Pediatrics, do not mean that the Internet is to blame. For one, teens in the study who spent no time online were also at increased risk of depression symptoms. Instead, the researchers say that both heavy Internet use, and non-use, could serve as signals that a teenager is having a hard time.

    For the study, Dr. Pierre-Andre Michaud and his colleagues at the University of Lausanne, Switzerland, surveyed 7,200 individuals aged 16 to 20 about their Internet use.

    Those who were online more than two hours per day were considered "heavy" Internet users, while those online anywhere from several times per week to two hours per day were considered "regular" users.

    The teenagers also answered a number of health-related questions, including some standard questions about "depressive tendencies" that gauge(判定) how often a person feels sad or hopeless. Compared with regular Internet users, the study found, kids who were heavy users or non-users were more likely to be depressed or very depressed.

    Among male teens, heavy users and non-users were both around one-third more likely to have a high depression score, compared to "regular" users. Among girls, heavy Internet users had an 86 percent greater chance of depression, while non-users had a 46 percent greater likelihood compared to regular users.

    That was with factors like family income and any chronic health problems taken into account.

    Since teenagers typically go online to contact with friends, the researchers speculate(推测) that those who are never online may be more socially isolated.

    We love the sea. We swim into it, live near it, build beside it, and even imagine about living under the sea. But we're terrified of it, too. For much of our history, we have turned to "hard engineering" to control the marine (海洋) environment and manage its influence on us. We build dams, sea walls and channels. But all these efforts seem to fail. The sea has a habit of taking back its own. And we suffer.

    Johnston, a marine ecologist, is advocating for "blue engineering" — the marine version of the "green engineering" movement on land that has seen nations like Singapore building the walls and roofs of the concrete jungle with plant life.

    We are expanding further into the marine environment. This practice does harm lo marine ecosystems. We're loving the sea to death, but we've not been thinking about design of structures (建筑物) with respect to ecology. Some coastal structures create shade, which reduces the growth of seaweed. Bright lights at night contuse species such as turtles. That's why blue engineering comes in.

    Throughout the world people are starting to turn things around. Researchers with the World Harbour Project are creating tiles (瓦片) similar to the natural structures found on rocky shores with 3D printing technology. These make more attractive homes for marine creatures. Researchers are also actively seeding these tiles with local seaweeds and creatures such as the Sydney rock oyster, which is particularly good at improving water quality. Twelve harbours around the world are taking part in this marine tile experiment, each working with their own unique marine life.

    It's a far cry from, he days when huge number, of old tyres were thrown, into the sea to build "artificial reef" (礁石). Those clumsy early attempts are now costing millions to remove, showing just how far we have yet to go in understanding how best to co-habit with the underwater world.