To American visitors, Iceland is a very interesting country, partly because it is different in so many ways from he or she is used to seeing at home. There are quite a few things that are not done, or that do not exist on the island—quite a few “No's”．

    There is no pollution, for instance, no dogs are permitted in Reykjavik, the capital. There is no television on Thursdays or during the whole month of July, and only three hours of black­and­-white TV the rest of the time. There is no hard liquor（酒） on Wednesdays and no beer at any time. There is no handguns; only one prison of thirty­ five rooms in the whole land—an admirable figure, even for a small country of 313,376 people.

    There is no army, air force or navy. There is no tipping（给小费） for anything. There are no large stores open on Saturdays or Sundays. Since Iceland is located just under the Arctic Circle, there is no darkness in summer and no daylight in winter. But thanks to Gulf Stream, the climate is rather mild, with temperatures between 34 degrees and 52 degrees in July.

    The rules on television liquor and guns are the result of government decisions. But the absence of pollution is because of in great part the fact that Iceland gets its power from the thousands of hot springs(泉水) that come out of the ground. They provide all the energy needed by the country. In fact, Iceland uses only 3 percent of all its available power.

    Iceland has been described as a democratic（民主的） independent country where more fish are caught and more books published per person than anywhere else in the world. The Icelanders have always felt a particular love for literature. They wrote their first books in the ninth and tenth centuries AD. These works were poems and tales about the kings, heroes, and heroines of Iceland and Norway. At first, the stories were remembered and passed from generation to generation. They were finally written down between 1140 and 1220. The Icelanders have never stopped writing ever since. “Rather shoeless than bookless，” they proudly say.

    On 20th July 1969, millions of people saw Neil Armstrong take his first steps in space on television. Armstrong got out of the spacecraft Apollo 11, touched the ground of the moon and said, “That's one small step for man, one giant leap for mankind.”

    A conspiracy(阴谋)theory has existed since the night of his lunar handing. Armstrong's achievements were considered amazing, but people wondered if it really happened. Many people believe that the scene on the moon wasn't real. Rumours spread throughout coffee shops, street comers, and newspapers, but it soon died down.

    But theories resurfaced in 2001 Suspicion began when an American television network aired a program called Conspiracy Theory: Did We Land on the Moon? The show argued that NASA did not have the money for such a voyage, and that the whole scene was probably filmed in a movie studio. Many critics say that there were no stars in the background during the lunar landing, so it must have been a fake. They also point out that the American flag that was posted was waving. How could that be if there is no wind on the moon?

    NASA(National Aeronautics and Space Administration)has denied these rumours many times. They explained that now photographers can capture the brightness of the astronauts with the dimness of the stars behind them. Also, they said that the flag was waving because the astronauts were pulling it back and forth trying to get it deeper into the rock. NASA also points out that the television program fails to mention that Armstrong and his team brought back 800 pounds of rock from the moon.

    Nell Armstrong is seen as a national icon in the US and his lunar landing is one of the most historic events in the country's history. But either way, this conspiracy theory still exists today.

    Aging brings wrinkles, sagging bodies and frustrating forgetfulness. But getting older is not all bad for many people. Mounting evidence suggests aging may be a key to happiness. There is conflicting research on the subject, however, and experts say it may all boil down to this: Attitude is everything.

    Older adults tend to be more optimistic and have a more positive outlook on life than their younger and stressed opposites. The big question is why seniors are happier. A recent study suggests one reason: Older adults remember the past through happy memories. Aging can bring more cheer as people become more comfortable with themselves and their roles in society. The older adults said they were enjoying more time with their family, spending more time on hobbies and having greater financial security and did not have to work.

    But others are doubtful about the link between happiness and growing older.

    "The notion that those in old age are happiest is misleading," said Richard Easterlin, a professor of economics at the University of Southern California. "It is based on comparing people of different ages who are the same in terms of income, health, family life." Easterlin added, "When you take account of the fact that older people have lower income than younger, are less healthy, and more likely to be living alone, then you will find it hard to accept that they are happier.

    In fact, scientists have found that as people age, their health declines and social networks disappear as their friends die, which can make the elderly less happy.

    Even if one does give in to age's dark side, health and happiness don't always go hand-in-hand. It's all about attitude. Research by the University of Chicago's Yang suggests that attitude about life and happiness, is partly shaped by the era in which a person was born. It turns out that individuals who adapt the best to changes also have the highest expected levels of happiness.

 Despite the conflicting findings about aging and happiness, the good news is that there doesn't appear to be a limit to how much happiness one can achieve in one's life. “Most people desire happiness,” Easterlin said. “To my knowledge, no one has identified a limit to attainable happiness.”

    Why do you go to the library? For books, yes—but you like books because they tell stories. You hope to get lost in a story or be transported into someone else's life. At one type of library you can do just that—even though there's not a single book.

    At a Human Library, instead of books, you can "borrow" people. People with unique life stories volunteer to be the "books." For a certain amount of time, you can ask them questions and listen to their stories, which are as fascinating as any you can find in a book. (If you attend, make sure to review the habits that make you a good listener.) Many of the stories have to do with some kind of depressing topic. You can speak with a refugee, a soldier suffering from PTSD (创伤后遗症), a homeless person and a woman living with HIV. The Human Library encourages people to take time to truly get to know and learn from someone they might otherwise make a snap judgement about. According to its website, the Human Library is "a place where difficult questions are expected, appreciated and answered."

    The Human Library Organization came to be in Copenhagen, Denmark in 2000. Romni Abergel and his colleagues hosted a four-day event during a major Northern European festival. After the success of this event, Abergel founded the Human Library Organization, hoping to raise awareness among youth about depression, which has been growing ever since.

    Though there a few permanent human libraries, most aren't place at all, but events. Though many do take place at physical libraries, you don't need a library card—anyone can come and be part of the experience. There have been human library events all over the globe, in universities and in pubs, from Chicago to Tunis to Edinburgh to San Antonio. Check out the organization's Facebook page to see when the Human Library might be arriving near you.

    Kinder Camp

    This is a week-long camp, Monday through Friday, for children from three years old to those entering first grade in the fall. Early childhood educators guide your child through activities including songs, games, stories and walks in the woods. Daily themes include dirt, furry animals, insects and more! Parents sign up to bring a snack (小吃).Choose from either morning or afternoon sessions, from June 9 to July 1& 2019.

    Kids Camp

    Children explore all day in the natural world. Art, music, cooperative games and hikes through the woods are some of the activities in this fun-filled week. Each grade level has its own camp program especially designed with the campers5 interests in mind.

    Camp takes place Monday through Friday, 9 am to 3 pm.

    Level 1 (completed 1st grade): July 28 to August 1, 2019.

    Level 2 (completed 2nd grade): August 4 to 8 2019.

    Level 3 (completed 3rd grade): August 11 to 15, 2019.

    Please note: children must bring their own lunches.

    Outdoor Expeditions

    Send your child on a traveling adventure. Teenagers will investigate the natural, cultural and historical facts that make their hometown a great city. Activities will include unique field trips and tours.

    Outdoor Expedition: from 9 am to 3 pm, August 11 to 15, 2019.

    Please note: children must bring their own lunches.

    Rainbow Camp

    Campers enjoy all kinds of activities including arts and crafts, music and singing, drama, active games, cooking and a host of special events that go with our theme weeks! Special guests are invited to the camp every week to entertain our campers and may include storytellers, musicians and magicians.

Week-long camps, June 14 to July 18.

    Campers must be at least 4 years old to take part.

    For more information, call Frick Environmental Center at (412) 422-6538.

    Some years ago, Michel-Andre found himself staring at the body of a dead whale on a beach in the Canary Islands. It was obvious that the animal had been struck violently by a ship——but why? Only later, after surveying the whales which lived in the area and measuring the increase of sound pollution from ships did it become clear that there was a link.

    The whales had become desensitised to the noise of approaching boats and were being struck by them, often seriously. "We never thought that this could be something that could kill," recalls (回忆) Andre, who is the director of the Laboratory of Applied Bioacoustics at the Technical University of Catalonia, Barcelona.

    Andre has spent 20 years developing an advanced system to better understand why incidents like this happen. His underwater microphones have exposed a world of deafening sound and animal communication never observed with such clarity(清晰) before.

    It was not an easy task. Sound waves don't travel through water in the uniform, predictable way they do through the air. Instead, the temperature, salinity (盐度) and, flow of water have great effects on their path.

    What can be done? One solution is to change shipping routes to courses where ships are statistically less likely to meet animals. It's also possible to slow ships down to 18km/h or less, which is less likely to seriously injure a whale.

    As for dealing with the root cause of the problem, the UN's International Maritime Organisation has already published guidelines on how to quieten ships, but it will be a while before the effects of such changes might be observed.

    "The ocean is not our world," comments Andre. But it is ours to look after. And thanks to his work, we can better understand the effects of subsea sound pollution.