Experiments under way in several labs aim to create beneficial types of genetically modified foods, including starchier potatoes and caffeine-free coffee beans. Genetic engineers are even trying to transfer genes from a cold-winter fish to make a frost-resistant tomato.

    A low-sugar GM strawberry now in the works might one day allow people with health problems such as diabetes (糖尿病) to enjoy the little delicious red fruits again. GM beans and grains rich in protein(蛋白质) might help people at risk of developing kwashiorkor. Kwashiorkor, a disease caused by severe lack of protein, is common in parts of the world where there are severe food shortages.

    Commenting on GM foods, Jonathon Jones, a British researcher, said: "The future benefits will be enormous（巨大的）, and the best is yet to come". To some people, GM foods are no different from unmodified foods. "A tomato is a tomato," said Brian Sansoni, an American food manufacturer.

    Critics of GM foods challenge Sansoni's opinion. They worry about the harm that GM crops might do to people, other animals, and plants.

    In a recent lab study conducted at Cornell University, scientists tested pollen(花粉) made by BT corn, which makes up one-fourth of the U.S. corn crop. The scientist dropped the pollen onto milkweed, a plant that is the only known food source of a butterfly caterpillar(毛虫). Within four days of feeding on the leaves, almost half of a test group of caterpillars died. "This is a warning bell." said Cornell researcher Linda Raynor.

    Some insects that are not killed by GM foods might find themselves made stronger. How so? The insecticides are used on the crops to kill the pests. But GM plants produce a continuous level of insecticide. Insects relying on those crops may develop resistance to the plants and they may also develop a resistance to the insecticide.

    At the forum on GM food held last year in Canada. GM crops that have been made resistant to the herbicide might crossbreed with wild plants, creating "superweeds" that could take over whole fields.

    So where do you stand? Should GM food be banned in the United States, as they are in parts of Europe? Or do their benefits outweigh（胜过） any of the risks they might carry?

    The US will have a new president this fall. Voters will decide between the Democratic candidate (候选人), Hillary Clinton, and Donald Trump of the Republicans.

    But the voting is not a must for each person in the US. So quite a lot of people choose not to vote, especially the young generation. According to Fox News, one-in-five young voters between the ages of 18 and 35 said clearly that they wouldn't vote for either of the two candidates. Just 12 percent of voters aged 35-54, and only nine percent of voters aged 55 and older said the same thing.

    This is not only because young people don't like Clinton or Trump, according to the Fortune magazine. The truth is that they are traditionally less likely to vote than their parents.

    “Young people are not at an age in their life when they think politics or government has anything to do with them,” said Rodd Freitag, a political science professor at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, US. “But for the older age groups, they have a home, they pay taxes (税), they care about schools and the community.”

    Many believe that the civic (公民的) education of an American youth is another reason why they don't vote.

    Students usually just do community services like cleaning the neighborhoods. This means they haven't learned how to link real life problems to politics through voting, according to Christopher Beem, a politics professor at the Pennsylvania State University.

    He said the country needs to help young people learn how to take part in politics and get them to see that they can make a difference.

    It is hardly surprising that clothing manufacturers (生产商) follow certain uniform standards for various features (特征) of clothes. What seems strange, however, is that the standard adopted for women is the opposite of the one for men. Take a look at the way your clothes button. Men's clothes tend to button from the right, and women's from the left. Considering most of the world's population—men and women—are right-handed, the men's standard would appear to make more sense for women. So why do women's clothes button from the left?

    History really seems to matter here. Buttons first appeared only on the clothes of the rich in the 17th century, when rich women were dressed by servants. For the mostly right-handed servants, having women's shirts button from the left would be easier. On the other hand, having men's shirts button from the right made sense, too. Most men dressed themselves, and a sword drawn from the left with the right hand would be less likely to get caught in the shirt.

    Today women are seldom dressed by servants, but buttoning from the left is still the standard f0r them. Is it interesting? Actually, a standard, once set, resists change. At a time when all Women's shirts buttoned from the left, it would have been risky for any single manufacturer to offer women's shirts that buttoned from the right. After all, women had grown so used to shirts which buttoned from the left and would have to develop new habits and skills to switch. Besides, some women might have found it socially awkward to appear in public wearing shirts that buttoned from the right, since anyone who noticed that would believe they were wearing men's shirts.

    Nancy Wake was born in New Zealand, in 1912. The family moved to Australia in 1914 and after being educated in Sydney, she travelled to Europe where she worked as a journalist. In Nazi (纳粹的) Germany she saw the rise of Adolf Hitler and Anti-Semitism. On one occasion in Vienna she witnessed Jews being whipped by members of the Sturm Abteilung (SA). In 1939 Nancy married the wealthy French industrialist, Henri Fiocca, in Marseilles. Nancy was in France when the German Army invaded in May 1940. After the French government surrendered, Nancy joined the French Resistance. She worked with Ian Garrow's group helping British airmen shot down over France to escape back to Britain.

    In December 1940 the network was betrayed and Nancy was forced to go into hiding. She continued to work for the French Resistance and was eventually arrested while in Toulouse. However, the authorities did not realize they had captured the woman known as the “White Mouse” and she was set free after four days.

    It was now too dangerous to remain in occupied France and Nancy crossed the Pyrenees into Spain before travelling to Britain. She now joined the Special Operations Executive (SOE) and agreed to become a British special agent (特工).

On 29th April 1944, Nancy was parachuted into the Auvergne region of France. Her main aim was to locate local soldiers and to provide them with some guns that were being dropped by parachute by the Royal Air Force four times a week.

Nancy had the task of helping the resistance to prepare for the armed uprising that was due to coincide with the D-Day landings. She also led an attack against the Gestapo headquarters in Mountucon and a German gun factory. Henri Tardivat, one of her comrades in the resistance later said that: “She is the most feminine woman I know, until the fighting starts. Then she is like five men.”

    After the war, Nancy worked for the Intelligence Department at the British Air Ministry. In 1960 she married John Forward and returned to Australia to live.

    How much weight a baby gains during its first month could determine its IQ, as a new research suggests. The study found that children who gain more weight, and whose heads grow quickly during the first month of life, tend to have a higher IQ when they start school.

    Researchers at the University of Adelaide, in Australia^ studied 13,800 children who were born at full-term. They found that those who put on 40% of their birth weight in the first four weeks had an IQ 1.5 points higher than those who only put on 15% of their birth weight. Those who experienced the biggest growth in head circumference (头围) also had the highest IQs by the age of six.

“Head circumference is an indicator of brain volume, so a greater increase in head circumference in a newly-born baby suggests more rapid brain growth,” says the led author of the study, Dr. Lisa Smithers.

    She added, “Overall, newly-born children who grew faster in the first four weeks had higher IQ scores later in life. Those children who gained the most weight scored especially high on verbal (言语) IQ at age 6. This may be because the neural (神经的) structures for verbal IQ develop earlier in life, which means the rapid weight gain during the first month could be having a direct cognitive benefit for the children.”

    Previous studies have shown the association between early postnatal (产后的) diet and IQ, but this is the first study of its kind to focus on the IQ benefits of rapid weight gain in the first month of life. Dr. Smithers says the study further highlights the need for successful feeding of newly-born babies. “We know that many mothers have difficulty establishing breastfeeding in the first week of their babies' life,” Dr. Smithers said.

    “The findings of our study suggest that if babies are having feeding problems, there needs to be early intervention (干预) in the management of that feeding.”

Best Way to Save Money

    Although the best way to save money can vary from person to person, depending on age, family size and other characteristics, there are still some easy things that all shoppers can do to keep more money in their bank accounts.

    Avoid Impulse (冲动的) Purchases

    When you shop, a best way to save money is to have a plan in mind to help you avoid impulse purchases. For instance, you might leave your credit cards at home and only carry the exact amount of cash that you will need for your planned purchase. Some shoppers agree to discuss any purchases over a certain dollar amount with their spouses (配偶) first.

    Know When to Pay for Quality

    Sometimes the best way to save money in the long term is to spend a little more money right now. A good piece of furniture can stay in the family for decades. A high-quality pair of shoes will last longer than a bargain pair and prevent foot pain. Leaner cuts of meat and organic produce provide health benefits for your family.

    Buy Secondhand

    Check classified ads, thrift stores and garage sales for used clothing, toys, furniture, and much more available at a part of their original cost. For the most secondhand savings, check out groups like Freecycle where members offer unwanted items for free to anyone willing to pick them up.

    Borrow Instead of Buy

    If you're only going to use something once, try to borrow it instead of spending your money on it. Borrow a tool from your neighbor. Swap books with a friend. Check out the resources at your local library. You'll also be reducing disorder in your home.