When we think of a generation gap we usually think of conflicting tastes in music, or pastimes. But now the generation gap is handwriting. After one teacher in Tennessee discovered that she had students who couldn't read the assignments she was writing on the board, she posted it on the Internet saying handwriting should be taught in schools.

    Opponents claim that handwriting has become out of time in our modern world. Typed words have become a primary form of communication. Once a practical kill handwriting is no longer used by the vast majority of Americans. It is no longer taught in schools, and some claim that the time that it would take to teach it could be put to better use, for instance, by teaching the technical skills.

    But even in today's world there are still plenty of reasons to pick up a pen and apply it to paper. Many American institutions still require original signatures, for instance, signing for a registered letter and buying a house. And original signatures are much more difficult to forge(伪造) than their digital counterparts. There is also strong evidence that writing by hand is good for the mind. It activates a different part of the brain, and improves fine moving skills in young children. People also tend to remember what they write by hand more than what they type, and the process of writing by hand has been shown to stimulate ideas. Besides, studies have shown that kids who write by hand learn to read and spell earlier than those who don't. Not to mention, handwriting is pleasing, as is evidenced by the fact that no one has ever typed a love letter. And handwriting remains popular as an art form.

    Yes, we live in a modern world, but we live in a modern world that is based on fundamental values.

    Physics is a different world now. Will there ever be another Einstein?

    Scientists say a new Einstein will appear, but it may take a long time. After all, more than 200 years separated Einstein from his nearest rival (对手) , Isaac Newton. Many physicists say the next Einstein hasn't been born yet, or is only a baby now. That's because the searching for a unified(统一的) theory that would explain all the forces of nature has pushed current mathematics to its limits. New math must be created before the problem can be solved.

    But researchers say there are many other factors working against another Einstein appearing anytime soon. For one thing, physics is quite a different field today. In Einstein's day, there were a few thousand physicists worldwide, and fewer theoreticians. Education is different, too. One extremely important aspect of Einstein's training that failed to be considered is the philosophy he read as a teenager. It taught him how to think theoretically about space and time.

    And he was a skilled musician. The interplay between music and math is well known. Einstein would fiercely play his violin as a way to think through a knotty physics problem.

    Today, universities have produced millions of physicists. There aren't many jobs in science for them, so they go to Wall Street and Silicon Valley to apply their analytical skills to more practical and rewarding efforts.

    Besides, those who stay in science don't work alone. It's very difficult to imagine an independent person like Einstein ever tolerating this.

    Spotify can tell if you're sad. Here's why that should scare you. Want to figure out if someone is a patient with a mental disability: Ask them what their favorite song is. A New York University study last year found that people who loved Eminem's Lose Yourself and Justin Bieber's What Do You Mean? were more likely to have trouble with mental disabilities than people who were into Dire Straits.

    Over the past few years, Spotify has been improving the ability to analyze information to help businessmen target consumers with advertisements made specially for their needs. They conclude this from the sort of music you're listening to, combined with where and when you're listening to it, along with third-party data that might be available.

    Now, to be clear, there's nothing significantly illegal about what Spotify is doing with your information. I certainly don't think that they are working with shadowy consulting firms to serve you ads selling a culture struggle while you're listening to music that suggests you might be in a terrible situation. However, I find it disappointing that our personal, private moments with music are increasingly being turned into information points and offered to advertisers.

    You can see where this could go, can't you? As ad targeting gets ever more accurate, businessmen will have the ability to target our feelings in potentially improper ways. According to one study, you are more likely to spend more on a product if you're feeling sad. You can imagine some companies might take advantage of that. And on that note, I'm feeling a little down about all this. Head off to treat myself to something expensive.

    When Sir Ector saw Arthur pulled the sword out of the stone and then pushed it back, he rubbed his eyes. "I can't believe it!" he cried. Then he fell on his knees before Arthur. "Father, please do not kneel before me. Tell me what you mean!" Arthur said with great confusion.

    "Listen, then," said Sir Ector. "Years ago the wise magician, Merlin, carried a baby in his arms. That baby was you. Merlin told me to bring you up as my own son. Now I can guess. You must be the late king—King Uther's son. Who else could have pulled out the sword? Arthur, we must let all England know you are qualified to be the new king."

    "I would rather be your son than be a king!" cried Arthur.

    "On Christmas the Bishop (主教) will give everyone a chance to pull the sword. You must take your turn and show everyone that you are the only person who can pull the sword out."

    On Christmas Day the great crowd of knights (骑士) and lords gathered before the church. They pulled and pushed, but no one could make the sword move.

    Down the street came Merlin. Behind him came Sir Ector with Arthur. "Who are these men?" asked the Bishop. "Here is one who will try the sword," said Merlin. He laid his hand on Arthur's shoulder. "Here, lords of England, is the true son of King Uther!" Arthur stepped upon the stone and laid his hand on the sword. Smoothly and easily he pulled it out. He held it high so all could see.

    So Arthur became King of all England. Some of the lords did not want him, and he had to fight them. As the years went by, he became stronger and greater. Knights came from all lands to be in his court. At Camelot Arthur started the famous Knights of the Round Table. These were the greatest of all the knights. They made their names famous for all time.

    One night in 1966, Michael Chapman rushed into a folk-music club in Cornwall, England to get out of the rain, and soon found himself onstage playing the guitar.

    "They offered me a job to play for the rest of the summer. And I've been playing ever since," Chapman says. "I've told that story so many times, but it's absolutely true. If it hadn't been raining that night, I wouldn't be talking to you."

    The British guitar player has spent the 50 years since then on the road. He released some praised albums in the 1970s, but his health went downhill in the 80s and 90s. Like a lot of British artists in the 1960s, Chapman taught himself to play the guitar by listening to American jazz and blues records.

    Chapman actually taught photography, but quit when he was 26 to play music full time. When he was starting out, he was often compared to other British acoustic (原声的) guitar heroes of the time, like John Martyn and Bert Jansch.

    "The fascinating thing about Michael Chapman is that he doesn't fit in with those guys of his generation," says Andrew Male, a music journalist. "He's always- been an outsider. He never moved to London."

    And while he never became part of the London music scene, Chapman was noticed by those musicians. "The 70s caught up with him in the 80s," Male says. "He had a huge heart attack at the end of the 80s that nearly finished him off. When he made his way back into the world in the early 90s, people had forgotten about him."

    But not everyone. A younger generation of musicians in America, including Thurston Moore of Sonic Youth and a younger singer and guitarist named Steve Gumi, recently rediscovered Chapman.

    "We wanted to capture Michael's voice and character where he is now. You know, it's a little road-weary, but he still has it," Gunn says. "For me, it was really important to get that right," "He's the right old musician for present times," Male says. "I think the music he makes seems quite in tune with where we're at."

Blameless

    I was a freshman in college when I met the Whites. They were completely different from my own family, yet I felt at home with them immediately. Jane White and I became friends at school, and her family welcomed me like a long-lost cousin.

    In my family, it was always important to place blame when anything bad happened.

    "Who did this?" my mother would scream about a dirty kitchen.

    "This is all your fault, Katharine," my father would insist when the cat got out or the dishwasher broke.

    From the time we were little, my sister, brothers and I told on each other. We set a place for blame at the dinner table.

    But the Whites didn't worry about who had done what. They picked up the pieces and moved on with their lives. The beauty of this was driven home to me the summer Jane died.

    In July, the White sisters and I decided to take a car trip from their home in Florida to New York. The two older sisters, Sarah and Jane, were college students, and the youngest, Amy, had recently turned sixteen. Proud of having a new driver's license, Amy was excited about practicing her driving on the trip. She showed off her license to everyone she met.

    The big sisters shared the driving of Sarah's new car during the first part of the trip, but when they reached less crowded areas, they let Amy take over. Somewhere in South Carolina, we pulled off the highway to eat. After lunch, Amy got behind the wheel. She came to a crossroads with a stop sign. Whether she was nervous or just didn't see the sign no one would ever know, but Amy continued into the crossroads without stopping. The driver of a large truck, unable to stop in time, ran into our car.

    Jane was killed immediately.

    I was slightly injured. The most difficult thing that I've ever done was to call the Whites to tell them about the accident and that Jane had died. Painful as it was for me to lose a good friend, I knew that it was far worse for them to lose a child.

    When Mr. and Mrs. White arrived at the hospital, they found their two daughters sharing a room. Sarah had a few cuts on the head; Amy's leg was broken. They hugged us all and cried tears of sadness and of joy at seeing their daughters. They wiped away the girls' tears and made a few jokes at Amy as she learned to use her crutches(拐杖).

    To both of their daughters, and especially to Amy, over and over they simply said, "We're so glad that you're alive."

    I was astonished. No blame. No accusations.

    Later, I asked the Whites why they never talked about the fact that Amy was driving and had run a stop sign.

    Mrs. White said, "Jane's gone, and we miss her terribly. Nothing we say or do will ever bring her back. But Amy has her whole life ahead of her. How can she lead a full and happy life if she feels we blame her for her sister's death? "

    They were right. Amy graduated from the University of California and got married several years ago. She works as a teacher of learning-disabled students. She's also a mother of two little girls of her own, the oldest named Jane.