You are the collector in the gallery of your life. You collect. You might not mean to but you do. One out of three people collects tangible things such as cats, photos and noisy toys.

    These are among some 40 collections that are being shown at “The Museum Of”—the first of several new museums which, over the next two years, will exhibit the objects accumulated（积累）by unknown collectors. In doing so, they will promote（推动）a popular culture of museums, not what museums normally represent(代表).

    Some of the collections are fairly common—records, model houses. Others are strangely beautiful—branches that have fallen from tree, for example. But they all reveal （显露）a lot of things: ask someone what they collect and their answers will tell you who they are.

    Others on the way include “The museum of Collectors” and “The Museum of Me.” These new ones, it is hoped, will build on the success of “The Museum Of.” The thinkers behind the project want to explore why people collect, and what it means to do so. They hope that visitors who may not have considered themselves collectors will begin to see they, too, collect.

    Some collectors say they started or stopped making collections at important points: the beginning or end of adolescence ( 青春期 )—“it's a growing-up thing; you stop when you grow up,” says one. Other painful times are mentioned, such as the end of a relationship.

    I've loved my mother's desk since I was just tall enough to see above the top of it when Mother sat doing letters. Looking at the ink bottle, pens and white paper, I decided that the act of writing must be the most wonderful thing in the world.

    Years later, during her final illness, Mother kept different things for my sister and brother, “But the desk,” she said again, “is for Elizabeth.”

    I never saw her get angry, and never saw her cry. I knew she loved me, and she showed it in action. But as a young girl, I wanted heart-to-heart talks between mother and daughter. They never happened and a gulf opened between us. I was “ too emotional (易动感情的) ”, but she lived “on the surface”.

    As years went by, I had my own family. I loved my mother and thanked her for our happy family. I wrote to her in careful words and asked her to let me know that she did forgive (原谅) me.

    I posted the letter and waited for her answer, but it didn't come. I wondered if the letter had even got to her. I only knew that I had written it, and I could stop trying to make her into someone she was not.

    Now the present of her desk told me that she was pleased that writing was my chosen work, though she had never been able to. I cleaned the desk carefully and found some papers inside … a photo of my father and a one-paper letter, folded (折叠) and refolded many times.

    Give me an answer, my letter asks, in any way you choose. Mother, you always chose the act that speaks louder than words.

    Dubai(迪拜)is one of the economically richest places in the world. With its numerous malls, hotels, and beautiful beaches, Dubai has always been a popular holiday destination. This city was visited by around 5 million tourists each year. The government wanted to increase this number to 15 million. However, Dubai has only 45 miles of coastline, which is nowhere enough for so many people. To solve this problem, an island that looked like a palm tree was built in 2006, and named the Palm Jumeirah.

    The plan for the island was extraordinary. It was to host several hotels, shopping malls, restaurants, and homes. Although the initial plan was to build the island from concrete(水泥), a decision was taken to create it from sand and gravel(砾石), so as to give it a natural look.

    To make sure that this project was a success, the best engineers from across the world were employed. Engineers from Holland formed the majority in this group. To begin with, the engineers calculated the strength of storms at sea, and also the expected amount of rise in water levels due to global warming. And then they found that, the proposed location for the island was neither very wide nor deep.

    One of the difficulties the engineers came across was to put sand on the sea bed to create the breakwater(防浪堤).Finding the right sand for the project was also a daunting task, as the sand from Dubai's deserts was too fine. Instead, sand from the sea was used, as it was coarser(粗糙). Once the breakwater was built, construction of the island began.

    The Palm Island are really impressive in terms of engineering. However, these projects are so large that they may have changed the ecology of the region. Also, an immense amount of money and resources go into maintaining the islands, which is a major concern at the moment. Only time will tell if building the Palm Islands was actually a good decision.

    Food is extremely important to us human beings and rice is one of the main food in the world. Australian researchers have discovered a way to genetically engineer rice which would provide significant health benefits to more than half the world's population.

    A study undertaken at the University of Tasmania, published in a respected journal of the National Academy of Sciences, discovered a method to increase the resistant starch (抗性淀粉）content in rice, making it more digestible and leading to lower rate of diabetes (糖尿病）and overweight.

    Steven Smith, the lead author of the study and a foreign expert for the Chinese government who has been appointed to work on crop improvement projects by the Chinese Academy of Sciences, said increasing the higher resistant starch content gave this “designer” rice many added health benefits. “We have discovered that we can increase the amount of resistant starch in cooked rice, which could provide health benefits for a large number of people in Asia and beyond,” Smith said in a media release on Friday. “The same approach can be adapted for use in other cereals, including wheat. Not only can it have benefits for diabetes and obesity, but also for disorders of the bowel(肠）including cancer.”

    Rice is the main food for more than half the world's population, providing much of the world with most of their calories. Smith said that as the rate of diabetes and obesity in Asian countries continued to grow, his “designer” rice could provide a way to limit health problems.

    “Not only does resistant starch reduce the possibility of a 'sugar hit' but it also reduces the appetite and promotes the growth of the healthy germs.” Smith said.

Smith divides his time between the University of Tasmania and his research lab in Beijing where he hopes to make significant advance in sustainable (可持续的）living.

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As part of our mission to inspire the next generation of scientists, inventors and engineers, the Science Museum Group (SMG) has launched an exciting new online game—Total Darkness.

Over the last year we have been developing Total Darkness with the aim of creating an experience that can have a positive impact on people's attitudes towards STEM (science, technology, engineering and maths), as well as having a focus on self-reflection, rather than asking players to recall specific facts or concepts.

Total Darkness is a digital storytelling experience which encourages young people to recognise how the skills they use every day relate to STEM and can help them develop their confidence in science thinking. The game invites the player to solve a mysterious power cut in their hometown. The game puts players in control, allowing their choices and decisions to guide them through the story.

As the player navigates through the darkened streets of the town, equipped only with a torch, they will face various challenges. Using their curiosity, communication skills and creative problem solving, they will discover new theories about what might have caused the blackout(停电；断电). But with every step their torch fades, and the player must solve the mystery before the battery runs out.

The player's choices and actions throughout the game will score them curiosity, creativity or communication points. At the end, the skills the player has used will be revealed along with their science style, showing how they could put their skills into action in the real world.

Total Darkness is aimed at 8-15 year-olds—an important stage in teens' science development. Research shows that as teens make the step between primary and secondary, many move away from an interest in science as other influences have a stronger pull in their lives.

Total Darkness is a free online game playable on smartphone, tablet and desktop. Play now at totaldarkness.sciencemuseum.org.uk.