Mr. Parker was born in a small village. His father was so poor that he couldn't send him to school. The boy had to help his parents to do some farming and learned English and maths by himself when he was free. Later on he was made to leave his home village and hoped to find a job in a city. And as soon as war broke out, he joined the army. He couldn't forget his terrible past and fought with the enemies bravely. So he became a general when he was fifty. He was honest and friendly to his soldiers and often punished those who tried to pocket a portion of the soldiers' pay (克扣军饷). And his soldiers liked him very much.

    Once Mr. Parker heard from a soldier. In the letter the young man said the food in their military camp was very bad and he wished the general could go to find out the reasons, the old man went there at once, without telling anybody. He went in the kitchen and examined everything carefully and found it was very dirty. Then he went in the soldiers' bedrooms and found there were a lot of fleas. He became angry and asked the soldiers, “What do you think of your food, young men?”

    The soldiers saw their officer standing by the general and said nothing Only a new soldier said, “Very bad, sir!”

    “What did you have for lunch today?” asked Mr. Parker.

    “A fried chicken, some fish and pork, a cake, six eggs and I had three cups of wine.”

    “Really?” Mr. Parker called out in surprise. “It's the King's lunch, I think!”

    “So do I, general,” said the young man. “But it's my birthday today. I paid three hundred dollars for them all in the restaurant!”

    It was dawn of March 21, 2018. Gary Messina was on his morning run along New York City's East River. Suddenly something caught his eye – a large 60-year-old man balancing on the four-foot-high fence that guarded the path from the water. As Messina got closer to the scene, the man took a step forward and slipped into the dark river below.

    When Messina reached nearer, the man was struggling in the water, clearly unable to swim. Other joggers also heard the man's cry. David Blauzvern and John Green dropped their phones and keys on land and jumped in. “People had called the police, but it was unclear when they'd get there.” says Green. “We just reacted.” Messina joined them in the river. Just as the jumper was losing strength, Blauzvern take hold of him. The pair were about 30 yards from the seawall when Messina and Green caught up to them. They seized the man, with Blauzvern supporting his back and Messina and Green holding him up from either side. As the men made their toward the concrete seawall that stretched (延伸) for blocks in each direction, Blauzvern had an awful realization: there was no way out of the river.

    By now, a crowd had gathered on land. “A rescue boat is on its way,” someone yelled to them. Swimming forward was getting tougher by the minute. The jumper, who was six foot two and weighed around 260 pounds, was heavy in his rescuers' arms. After ten minutes, they managed to get to the river's edge. “I've never been so out of breath,” says Blauzvern.

    Fifteen minutes after the men had jumped into the river, the two-man rescue boat appeared. But because it couldn't risk getting too close to the seawall, the men had to swim out to it. “I was completely out of energy at this point,” says Blauzvern. The men in the water pushed the jumper while the men in the boat pulled him up and, finally, to safety. The man they had saved was taken to the hospital for evaluation(评估). Details on his condition have not been known. As for the rescuers, each of them was at work by 10:30 a.m. “I was a bit late,” admits Blauzvern, smiling. “But I had a good excuse.”

Have you ever heard of the phrase "we just can't communicate"? Most people communicate with the ability to read or write well. This might not be the case as you will soon find out.

How many times have you been to the doctor's office and listened to an educated professional explain something to you that is just unintelligible. These people keep asking you, "Do you understand?" and sometimes out of embarrassment because you don't want to look like stupid, you tell them. "Yes, I do understand." This isn't a good way to communicate, either.

How do we communicate in a positive way to get our points across? Ask the persons you are communicating with if they understand what you just said. In another case, if someone is talking to you, use the statement, "Just to make sure that I understand what you just said" and then repeat back your understanding of their conversation. Sometimes just asking a few simple questions and clarifying your understanding can bring great benefits to any communication.

    In some countries like Japan, you might find them reading your body language more than the words you are communicating with. Sometimes just by the way someone stands or reacts to something you said, you can get a valuable insight to what the other person means in this conversation. Don't forget, however, this could also lead to a misunderstanding. Again if you think someone is communicating with their body language, try not to assume that you know exactly what message they are trying to get across. Always ask them if they understand what you are talking about.

    A person is responsible for what he says and to make sure that the other person completely understands the point he is trying to get across. Why not start using some of the simple skills in this article to help with your communication skill? You will start to see the benefits within a short period of time.

    Inspired by a 9-year-old cyclist, Lauren Turner, who can only use one hand, a group of University of Guelph students has won an international award for their invention－a bike brake lever (刹车手柄) that pulls both the front brake and the back brake at the same time.

    Lauren Tuner was able to ride her bike, but not as confidently and quickly as her friends.

    “She couldn't use the front brake. She only used the back brake, but the front brake makes you stop twice as fast,” says Micha Wallace, who, with Katie Bell, Anina Sakaguchi and Andrew Morries won second prize in the James Dyson Award for their single-handed bike brake lever.

    "Lauren Turner tried the device (装置) first and she used it all last summer. She had no problems. It helped her go faster because she felt more confident in her braking abilities. She felt safer." says Wallace.

    The invention was the fourth-year design project for the four students. They designed, tested and created a prototype (模型) within a four-month period.

    When Wallace heard about the James Dyson Award on the news, she and her co-inventors entered their project in the U.K.-based contest, which rewards students designers who create products that improve the way we live. The students collected the runner-up prize－£2,000 for them and £500 for their school.

    As well, they had a chance to meet James Dyson, a U.K. famous inventor. Praising the students for their invention, Dyson says the single-handed brake lever could improve safety for all cyclists. By using both brakes at once, you could prevent the possibility of flying over the handlebars and ending up with an injury.

    The students hope to sell it to a major company. It may be used in other devices that require two hands for operation.

    Antarctica has become one of the world's most popular tourist destinations. Since 1969, the average number of visitors to the continent has increased from several hundred to over 34,000 today. All activities in Antarctica are heavily supervised by the Antarctic treaty for environmental protection purposes and the industry is largely managed by the International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO).

    The first expedition (探险) to Antarctica with travelers was in 1966, led by Swedish explorer Lars Eric Lindblad. He wanted to give tourists first-hand experience of the ecological sensitivity of the Antarctic environment, in order to educate them and promote a greater understanding of the continent's role in the world. In 1969, Lindblad built the world's first expedition ship, the MS Lindblad Explorer, which was specifically designed to transport tourists to Antarctica.

    In 1977, both Australia and New Zealand started to offer scenic flights to Antarctica through Qantas and Air New Zealand. The flights often flew to the continent without landing and returned to the departure airport. The experience was an average 12 to 14 hours with up to 4 hours of flying directly over the continent. The flights from Australia and New Zealand stopped in 1980. It was largely due to the Air New Zealand Flight 901 accident on November 28, 1979. In 1994, flights to Antarctica continued again.

    Despite the potential dangers and risks, trips to Antarctica continued to grow. According to IAATO, 34,354 travelers visited the continent between 2012 and 2013. Americans contributed to the largest share with 10,677 visitors, or 31.1%, followed by Germans 11.1%, Australians 10.7%, and the British 10.2%. The rest of the visitors were from China, Canada, Switzerland, France and elsewhere.

    The cost of a trip to Antarctica can range from as little as $3,000-$4,000 to over $40,000, depending on the scope of transportation, housing, and activity needs. The higher end packages typically involve air transport, on-site camping, and a visit to the South Pole.

All animals play. Runing, rolling and wrestling with each other is a way for them to have fun, of course. But it also seems to be how they communicate and strengthen bonds with each other.

When a dog comes up to another dog, front legs bowed and his tail high, his buddy knows he wants to play. But new research shows that this play behavior is surprisingly similar when horses and dogs play.

To study interspecies communication, Elisabetta Palagi and her colleagues from the University of Pisa found 20 YouTube videos of dogs and horses playing where their interactions lasted at least 30 seconds. They analyzed the videos, looking for specific pattern of play.

They found that while playing, both dogs and horses often had relaxed, open mouths-which is common playful facial expression in mammals. Some also copied each other's movements, like pretending to bite, playing with an object, or rolling on their backs on the ground. A 2,000-pound horse can play with a relatively tiny dog because the two are able to communicate their intentions.

"It's an important study because it shows how two animals who look and behave so differently can nevertheless manage to negotiate how to play in a way that's comfortable for both," Barbara Smuts, a behavioral ecologist at the University of Michigan, told National Geographic.

It's even more noteworthy given the large size difference between horses and dogs. The dog is vulnerable (易受伤的) to injury by the horse, and the horse has a deeply rooted tendency to fear animals that look like wolves."

Next up, the researchers write, is exploring the development and shaping of interspecies communication that “can be at the basis of a universal language of play".