In ancient Egypt, a shopkeeper discovered that he could attract customers to his shop simply by making changes to its environment. Modern businesses have been following his lead,with more tactics（策略）.

One tactic involves where to display the goods. Foe example, stores place fruits and vegetables in the first section. They know that customers who buy the healthy food first will feel happy so that they will buy more junk food（垃圾食品）later in their trip. In department stores, section is generally next to the women's cosmetics(化妆品) section：while the shop assistant is going back to find the right size shoe, bored customers are likely to wander over cosmetics they might want to try later.

Besides, businesses seek to appeal to customers' senses. Stores notice that the smell of baked goods encourages shopping, they make their own bread each morning and then fan the bread smell into the store throughout the day. Music sells goods, too. Researchers in Britain found that when French music was played, sales of French wine went up.

           When it comes to the selling of houses, businesses also use highly rewarding tactics. They find that customers make decision in the first few second upon walking in the door, and turn it into a business opportunity. A California builder designed the structure of its houses smartly. When entering the house, the customer would see the Pacific Ocean through the windows, and then the poll through an open stairway leading to the lower level. The instant view of water on both levels helped sell these $10 million houses.

    A long-term American study shows the importance of early education for poor children. The study is known as the Abecedarian Project. It involved more than one-hundred young children from poor families in North Carolina.

    Half of the children attended an all-day program at a high-quality child-care center. The center offered educational, health and social programs. Children took part in games and activities to increase their thinking and language skills and social and emotional development. The program also included health foods for the children.

    The children attended the program from when they were a few weeks old until the age of five years. The other group of children did not attend the child-care center. After the age of five, both groups attended public school.

    Researchers compared the two groups of children. When they were babies, both groups had similar results in tests for mental and physical skills. However, from the age of eighteen months, the children in the educational child-care program did much better in tests.

    The researchers tested the children again when they were twelve and fifteen years old. The tests found that the children who had been in the child-care center continued to have higher average test results. These children did much better on tests of reading and mathematics.

    A few years ago, organizers of the Abecedarian Project tested the students again. At the time, each student was twenty-one years old. They were tested for thinking and educational ability, employment, parenting and social skills. The researchers found that the young adults who had the early education still did better in reading and mathematics tests. They were more than two times as likely to be attending college or to have completed college. In addition, the children who received early education were older on average, when their first child was born.

    The study offers more evidence that learning during the first months and years of life is important for all later development.

    The researchers of the Abecedarian Project believe their study shows a need for lawmakers to spend money on public early education. They believe these kinds of programs could reduce the number of children who do not complete school and are unemployed.

    Open work spaces definitely have their benefits，but they come with the drawback of offering employees little to no control over visual distractions(干扰)．With so many people around and so much going on，some of us can easily get disturbed by this information overload and lose focus in what's really important．That's where the Focus Cap comes into play．

    “As we are still cavemen or mammals kept in an unnatural environment，I believe that only by reclaiming(收回)the normal，stress-free human state through simple tools and techniques can we finally release our actual creative potential and create our meaningful work for a brighter future，”says German designer Hannes Greblin，inventor of the Focus Cap．

    After looking at other products designed at minimizing visual distractions，Greblin decided that most of them were either too expensive or too uncomfortable to become mainstream，so he decided to go with something much simpler —a simple cap with a retractable visor(可伸缩的帽沿)．

    Greblin's Focus Cap is really straightforward．You just wear it like a regular cap'with the sides of the visor retracted，and just collapse the sides whenever you need to focus on what's ahead of you．Whether you're trying to focus on a task in an open work office．Trying to study at university，or practicing yoga in a park and trying to ignore stares from strangers，the Focus Cap can help．

    To be honest，this whole project sounds like a joke，but the Focus Cap does have its own website where people interested in this unusual accessory can actually sign up for updates on when it will go on sale．Greblin claims it will cost 30 euros($37)plus shipping．

    Who could have imagined that a treadmill（跑步机）on wheels would one day become a thing?!? Lopifit is an unusual means of transportation that allows you to power an electric bicycle by walking on a treadmill.

Lopifit founder Bruin Bergmeester says it all started when he asked himself the question "How can I use a treadmill outdoors?" He finally came up with a new design, adding an electric motor, and the Lopifit was born. It's similar to an electric bicycle in that the motor only works when the rider puts power in as well. The Lopifit senses when you walk on the treadmill and uses the motor to turn a drive chain at the back of the treadmill, helping you reach a top speed of 17 miles per hour.

    To use the Lopifit, simply turn on the battery（电池）and use your foot to slide the treadmill backwards and start the motor. Then get on and enjoy the ride! If you need speed, just walk on the treadmill, and if you want to coast（惯性滑行）, all you have to do is stay still and admire the view. To stop, you have two hand breaks.

    The Lopifit first hit the streets in 2014 and, unsurprisingly, became a hit overnight. That was actually quite challenging for the company, because it started getting calls for orders, but it was nowhere near ready for mass production. The unique treadmill bicycle could be bought this year, and Lopifit is struggling to keep up with demand, although the price is up to $2,115.

    Some people consider this means of transportation stupid and unnecessary, although there is a very loyal fan-base of so-called Lopifitters. They simply believe that if you're going to walk, you might as well do it the old-fashioned way.

But the Lopifit does have the special advantage of helping you "walk" really fast without much effort, or walking at cycling speed, if you will.

    Whenever we talk about holidays, my mother teases my sister and me about how we “make out like robbers.” She is referring to the fact that we are half Jewish and half Indian, so we receive gifts on both the festivals of lights: Hanukkah and Diwali. Though my mother teases us, I do not mind getting two sets of gifts!

    Hanukkah is celebrated on the 25^th day of the Jewish month, which is usually sometime in December. On Hanukkah, like most Jewish families, we light a menorah and say a prayer each night. We also say a special prayer on the first night. After that, it is a tradition for my sister and me to do 'hot and cold' for our hidden Hanukkah gifts. When we walk towards the gift, our parents say 'hot' and when we walk further away, they say 'cold'. We each receive one present every night of Hanukkah. Another part I like about this holiday is seeing family members who we do not see often. My aunt usually stays for a few days, and we sometimes visit other relatives.

    Diwali is celebrated on the 13^th day of the dark fortnight of the month of Ashwin (October/November). To celebrate Diwali, my family does a pooja, or prayers, in honor of the goddess Lakshmi. Since she is the goddess of wealth and prosperity, the pooja includes washing silver coins in milk and water. In India, people decorate their houses with lamps, similar to the way you might light up your house for Christmas. My family just places a few candles outside. We also set off firecrackers, which is my favorite part. We often do this activity with friends to add to the excitement.

    Both holidays have different histories and stories. We celebrate them in different ways, yet they both have the same meaning. They both translate into Festival of Lights, and they both mean family and presents for me!

    Siblings refer to one's brothers and sisters. We're attached to siblings as adults far longer than we are as children. Our sibling relationships, in fact, are the longest-lasting family ties we have.

    “Paul, my younger brother, and I, kind of annoyed each other when we were kids,” said Anna, an interviewee, “But as adults, we've always had each other's back, especially when dealing with our mother's health crisis. Paul is the first person I want to talk to when something worries me.”

    There's probably a biological explanation for the close bond of the sibling relationship. Siblings share half their genes, which biologists say should be motivation enough for each other's devotion.

    One thing that can weaken closeness in adulthood is a parent who played favorites in childhood; this sense of hatred can last a lifetime. The simple concept of parental favoritism was enough to shake their relationship.

    “What Paul and I are pretty sure is our parents treated us the same when we were growing up. Yet we're very different people,” Anna said,“ Paul is outgoing while I'm shy. Paul is an amateur pianist while I can't read music or carry a tune. In families with more than one child, every sibling seems to get a label in contrast to every other sibling.”

    The very presence of siblings in the household can be an education. When a new baby is born, the older sibling gains social skills by interacting with the younger, and the younger gains cognitively（认知角度地）by imitating the older. They learn from the friction between them, too, as they fight for their parents' attention. Mild conflict between brothers and sisters teaches them how to interact with friends and co-workers for the rest of their lives.

    It's so sad when things between siblings fall apart, which happens when aging parents need care or die — old feelings of contradiction and jealousy erupt all over again. Many families get through their parents' illnesses just fine, establishing networks where the workload is divided pretty much equally. But about 40 percent of the time there is a single primary caregiver who feels like she is not getting any help from her brothers and sisters, which can lead to serious conflicts.

    Throughout adulthood, the sibling relationship “is powerful and unchanged,” said Jane Mersky Leder, author of the new e-book The Sibling Connection. Whether we are close to our siblings or distant, she writes, they remain our brothers and sisters — for better or for worse.

    So remember the immortal（永恒的）words of folksinger Loudon Wainwright Ⅲ, in a song called Thanksgiving.“ On this brilliant occasion, this special family dinner, if I argue with a loved one, please make me…”