Grandparents are respected in many human societies. But telling stories about old times and overfeeding grandchildren seem like human qualities. Are these classic grandparent behaviors really limited to humans?

Do any animals know their grandparents the way people do?

For most species on Earth, the answer is certainly " No" . " Usually, there aren't grandparents around anymore when an animal is born,"  said Mirkka Lahdenpera, a biologist at the University of Turku in Finland. " Even if an animal's life span does overlap (重叠) with its grandparents', most species spread out to avoid competing for resources, so the chance of running into a grandparent is slim." 

But there are a few clear exceptions, primarily among mammals (哺乳动物) that live in close social groups. In troops of langur monkeys in India, older females lived together with their daughters and grandchildren. The grandmother langurs defend the group's babies against attacks and even give their own grandchildren special treatment.

Many whale species, too, travel in family groups that include both grandmothers and grandchildren.

Elephant herds are also famously matriarchal. They are led by a grandmother, who can live to around 80 years old, and are generally made up of her daughters and their young. The females in a herd form close bonds and work together to raise their young.

Lahdenper found that the babies of young mothers were eight times more likely to survive if their grandmothers lived near them than if they didn't. When the young mothers were older and more experienced at raising babies, this beneficial grandmother effect disappeared even if the actual grandmothers were still around.

Indeed, most evidence for the benefits of grand parenting comes from mammals. But in 2010, researchers found that in troops of insects called gall-forming aphids, older females defend their relatives after they've stopped reproducing (繁殖).

And what about grandfathers? Studies of humans in recent decades have shown that a living grandfather can improve a person's mental health and other indicators of well-being. But there's no evidence of that in the animal kingdom. Male animals rarely socialize with their own children, let alone any grandchildren.

Recently, a new kind of bike called the shared bike has appeared in many cities in China. Shared bikes are easy and cheap to use. First, you download the app of a shared bike onto your smart phone. Then when you want to unlock and ride a bike, you just scan the two— dimensional code(二维码) on the bike with your smart phone. The GPS—supported app helps position the bikes no matter where they are parked. And they can be left in public places for the next users. If you need a bike, you can easily find the nearest one through the app. A 30—minute ride costs only 0.5 to 1 yuan.

Among different kinds of shared bikes, Ofo and Mobike are the most popular ones. It is said that in the first week of this year there were 585 million active users of Mobike and Ofo had 1.4 million users. Ofo, which got its name from the look of a bicycle(Ofo), was first used by students in Peking University and soon became popular out of the university.

 "In places where the subway doesn't get to, or places where it's difficult to change from one kind of transportation to another, it's easy to get where you want to go with a shared bike."said Hu Hong, one of the users from Shanghai.

Information Card

In old times, people didn't have smartphones or computers to use for fun. Still they had interesting games to play. Let's take a look.

Kites

Kites have quite a long history. In the old story, Mo Di made the first kite. People first used kites to send messages. In the Song Dynasty, kites got very popular with people. Now, Beijing, Tianjin, Nantong and Weifang are the four most important places of kite making.

Cuju

This is old Chinese soccer. The name" Cuju" first came out in the book Records of the Historian by Sima Qian. At first, soldiers played the game as training. In the Song Dynasty the game was all the rage at the time. People across the country loved playing it. Women also played the game.

 Chuiwan

Chuiwan is a ball game. It is a bit like golf(高尔夫). The game got popular in the Song Dynasty, It was still popular in the Yuan Dynasty and Ming Dynasty. Someone in the Yuan Dynasty even wrote a book called Wan Jing for the game. However, the game got less popular in the Qing Dynasty.

Go

Go, or Weiqi, is a game for two players. It has a history of more than 4,000 years. In the old story, Yao made the game to teach his son. People in old times thought it was a game for gentlemen(绅士).

My parents are very strict with me. They've made many family rules that I must follow. They want me to learn to be independent, so w{#blank#}1{#/blank#} I ask them to do something for me, they always say, "It's best to do it yourself!" But they often give me some{#blank#}2{#/blank#} (建议) that help me a lot. 

Next week, I'll set off on a trip to the mountains with my friends. My parents are w{#blank#}3{#/blank#} about me. So they make some safety rules. I'd like to share them with you. 

★Wear {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (柔软的) and comfortable clothes, strong shoes and thick socks. 

★Do not walk too close to the edge of the hill path. 

★Be careful of falling stones. 

★Choose {#blank#}5{#/blank#} (直的) paths — they are usually smooth. 

★Work with others to put up a t{#blank#}6{#/blank#}. 

★Do not make any {#blank#}7{#/blank#}(突然的) moves when seeing a bear. Just stand s {#blank#}8{#/blank#}. 

It's difficult for me to f{#blank#}9{#/blank#} asleep these days. Because I am so excited about the coming trip, especially when I think of the beautiful {#blank#}10{#/blank#}(小树林), fresh air and green grass. I am sure we will have a great time. 

Taking public transportation（公共交通） in the United States, you can often see people reading books on their way to school or work. But in China, I rarely （很少的） see people reading during their free time. 

Are people's attitudes toward reading different here？Not really, Data （数据） released by Amazon China in December 2017 show that Chinese people still read a lot. They simply prefer e﹣books over regular books. 

However, other data show that reading is still more popular in the US than in China. Is there a reason for this difference？I'm not sure. What I do know is that China has a rich history of literature （文学） （From classic novels like Romance of the Three Kingdoms（《三国演义》） to the modern science﹣fiction books The Three﹣ Body Problem（《三体》）, Chinese writers have created many fantastic written works. Perhaps the difference starts from childhood. Reading textbooks and doing homework can make you feel quite tired. By the time you finish it, you might not fell like reading for fun. Chinese students definitely （肯定） have to read more and do more homework than US students. So it's no wonder that they might not want to read much in their spare time. 

But learning to love reading can be great. Reading can open doors to places, people and ideas that you cannot imagine. Even just a single book has the power to change your own beliefs and attitudes. Where will your next book take you?

Swimming is a good way to exercise. Do you know open water swimming? It means swimming in the sea, a river or a lake. Open water swimming is {#blank#}1{#/blank#} (enjoy), but there is a lot more to think about. It's very important to know how {#blank#}2{#/blank#} (keep) safe(安全的) in the water. 

Most swimming {#blank#}3{#/blank#} (pool) make sure that the water is comfortable enough for people to get into. However, in open water swimming, the water is often much {#blank#}4{#/blank#} (cold), even in summer. It's not as warm{#blank#}5{#/blank#} swimming in the pool. {#blank#}6{#/blank#}many people like to wear a wetsuit(潜水衣) to help keep them warm. 

If you want{#blank#}7{#/blank#} (swim) in the open water, here are some rules for you to follow. First, choose{#blank#}8{#/blank#} safe place. You can ask the workers there and they can tell you the safest place. Next, never swim by {#blank#}9{#/blank#} (you). Always have an adult swimmer beside you. Third, don't swim too far and stay close{#blank#}10{#/blank#} the river bank or the beach if you are in the sea. 

Remember all these rules and you can have a great time swimming in the open water.