Can people change their skin color without suffering like pop king Michael Jackson? Perhaps yes. Scientists have found the gene that determines skin color.

    The gene comes in two versions, one of which is found in 99 percent of Europeans. The other is found in 93 to 100 percent of Africans, researchers at Pennsylvania State University report in the latest issue of Science.

    Scientists have changed the color of a dark-striped zebra-fish（斑马鱼） to uniform gold by inserting a version of the pigment (色素) gene into a young fish. As with humans, zebra-fish skin color is determined by pigment cells, which contain melanin (黑色素). The number, size and darkness of melanin per pigment cell determine skin color.

    It appears that, like the golden zebra-fish, light-skinned Europeans also have a mutation (变异) in the gene for melanin production. This results in less pigmented skin.

    However, Keith Cheng, leader of the research team, points out that the mutation is different in human and zebra-fish genes.

    Humans acquired dark skin in Africa about 1.5 million years ago to protect bodies from ultra-violet rays of the sun (太阳光紫外线), which can cause skin cancer.

    But when modern humans leave Africa to live in northern latitudes, they need more sunlight on their skin to produce vitamin D. So the related gene changes, according to Cheng.

    Asians have the same version of the gene as Africans, so they probably acquired their light skin through the action of some other gene that affects skin color, said Cheng.

    The new discovery could lead to medical treatments for skin cancer. It also could lead to research into ways to change skin color without damaging it like chemical treatment did on Michael Jackson.

    Join in the holiday fun at the powerhouse this month linked to our new exhibition, Evolution & Revolution : Chinese dress 1700s to now. DON'T FORGET our other special event, the Club Med Circus School which is part of the Circus! 150 years of circus in Australia exhibition experience !

    ◆ Chinese Folk Dancing: Colorful Chinese dance and musical performances by The Chinese Folk Dancing School of Sydney. Dances include: the Golden stick dance and the Chinese drum dance. A feature will be the Qin dynasty Emperor's court dance. Also included is a show of face painting for Beijing opera performances.

    Sunday 29 June and Wednesday 2 July in the Turbine Hall, at 11:30 am & 1:30 pm.

    ◆ Australian Chinese Children's Arts Theatre: Well-known children's play experts from Shanghai lead this dynamic youth group. Performances include Chinese fairy tales and plays.

    Thursday 3 to Sunday 6 July in the Turbine Hall, at 11:30 am & 1:30 pm.

    ◆ Chinese Youth League: A traditional performing arts group featuring performance highlights such as the Red scarf and Spring flower dances, and a musician playing Er Hu.

    Sunday 6 to Tuesday 8 July in the Turbine Hall, 11:30 am to 1:30 pm.

    ◆ Kids Activity: Make a Paper Horse: Young children make a paper horse cut-out. (The horse is a frequent theme in Chinese painting, indicating a kind of advancement. ) Suitable for ages 8-12 years.

    Sunday 28 June to Tuesday 8 July in the Turbine Hall, 12:00 pm to 1:00 pm.

    ◆ Club Med Circus School: Learn circus skills, including the trapeze, trampolining and magic. Note only for children over 5: There are 40 places available in each 1 hour session and these must be booked at the front desk, level 4, on the day.

    Tuesday 1 to Saturday 5 July at 11:30 am & 1:00 pm.

    Enjoy unlimited free visits and many other benefits by becoming a family member of the Powerhouse. Our family memberships cover two adults and all children under the age of 16 years at the one address. Members receive powerline, our monthly magazine, discounts in the shops and the restaurants, as well as free admission to the Museum. All this for as little as $50.00 a year! Call (02)9217 0600 for more details.

    Enjoying a musical performance no longer requires a costly ticket or a trip to a theater. These days, musicians are performing in private homes,at haircutting shops,at airports...even on ferry boats.

    Musicians like house concerts. At music clubs, they often have to perform over loud conversation or deal with people who have had too much alcohol.People at house concerts are more focused on listening to the music.

    Just a few hours before the Bombadils started singing at the O' Hair Salon,Lindsay was cutting hair and Tamera was doing facials.Then,they moved chairs and microphones to create a small performance space.The Bombadils made music in the front part of the hair salon,near the hair dryers and make-up table.

    "This is our first show at a hair salon,"Sarah Frank of the Bombadils told concertgoers at last week's performance.Frank said she and band members Luke Fraser and Kaitlyn Raitz had a great time "interacting" with the audience.

    Concerts in people's homes, or small businesses such as O' Hair's,are becoming more popular,musicians say. "There is a more relaxed atmosphere,"said Domenic Cicala,a musician who opened up his O' Hair Salon to concerts. "People really get to know the artists."

    At house concerts,people get time before and after concerts to meet the performers.Often,the hosts or guests will provide food and drink.

    "People really like listening to music in the living room of a friend,"said Matt Hart,with Aubrey Zoli making up Local Strangers,a folk-rock group based in Seattle.At many such concerts,the musicians do not need microphones. Yet,every word of their songs can be heard.

    For more and more young Chinese professionals, the first day back at work after the Lunar New Year holiday is the day they quit.

   The period after the Lunar New Year holiday, also known as Spring Festival, often sees Chinese workers on the move. This year, the number looking for new opportunities is supposed to be especially high.

    Mr. Zhu, a 27-year-old Beijing native, is one of the young workers looking for a better deal. “Salary is a big concern for me and I need a job that pays more, and my department can't provide good career development for me,” he said.

    An online survey by Zhaopin.com, a leading job-hunting website, provides further details on why China's young white-collar workers are so keen to move on.

    Low salaries are the biggest concern for 62% of the job-hunters, and overtime and a wide mismatch between low salaries and high housing costs are also the complaints. Two-thirds of them said they had to work at home after office hours, and a full 95% said they felt they were under heavy pressure because of the housing payment or rent.

    The survey also found that what was seen as a “good job” has changed. For the generation born in the 1970s, high salary and status is the key. For the generation born after 1980, work-life balance and respect in the office are also important.

    Zhao Bin, a 28-year-old woman who earns over 7,000 yuan a month working at a public relations company in Shanghai, said she would wait until the Lunar New Year to change her job. “My salary is OK for me, but I am working like crazy. So I want to find something comfortable, like being an English teacher in training schools.”

    The UK's largest coffee seller, Costa Coffee, has promised to recycle half a billion coffee cups a year by 2020 to deal with plastic waste. The move, which means recycling the same number of cups it puts onto the market, would account for a big percentage out of the 2.5 billion takeaway cups thrown away across the country every year.

    Though marked as recyclable, most of paper coffee cups end up on landfill(垃圾场) or being burned due to the plastic lining(涂层) used to make them waterproof. By paying waste collectors to take coffee cups to certain places, Costa hopes to increase the rate at which cups are recycled. Finally, all a customer will need to do to make sure their cup avoids landfill is throw it into a standard recycling bin.

    Started following the Environmental Audit Committee's report recommending ministers take action to deal with coffee cup waste, the campaign has pushed for action from governments and businesses and promoted possible solutions. Starbucks has promised ￡7m to develop a "fully recyclable cup" following pressure from campaigners, while Waitrose, a supermarket, has planned to stop using disposable(一次性的) coffee cups from its stores by autumn.

    The company has entered into a partnership with five national waste collectors – Veolia, Biffa, Suez, Grundon and First Mile – that between them cover public spaces across the UK including hospitals, universities and transport hubs. The coffee company is also working with paper factories to make sure their products are recycled effectively. James Cropper, for example, has plans to upgrade 500 million cups a year to create plastic-free packaging. By building more partnerships with waste contractors in every area, Costa means to hit its half a billion mark within two years.

    With one report showing the number of takeaway drink cups thrown away in the UK is set to rise by a third by 2030, and the government recently failing to tax some coffee to discourage cup use, it falls to businesses to act on the huge amount of waste from their products.

    Commenting on the announcement, Environment Minister Therese Coffey said: "Congratulations to Costa on taking this significant step to help coffee lovers do the right thing and increase recycling. We all have a responsibility to our environment and this is a significant step by a British business which should increase the number of disposable coffee cups we recycle in this country." "We want to help companies become plastic free and through our 25 Year Environment Plan we are putting in place the aims to encourage all of us to play our part in ending the pollution of plastic waste in our natural environment."

    I was getting ready to go to bed when the phone rang. This could not be good. My mind raced through the list of family members who might need help, but the voice was hardly familiar.

    "Lindy, this is Lesley." I don't know Lesley well. We did occasionally speak with each other, but to say we were friends was not appropriate. I asked what she needed. Perhaps something really awful caused her to reach someone she barely knew. Instead, she asked me, "Do you have room for a turkey? In your freezer?" We had lots of room in our freezer, and in fact, too much. "Sure," I responded, "did your freezer break down?" "Not exactly," Lesley replied, but I will explain when I arrive."

    Minutes later came a huge freezer truck. Lesley stepped down and explained the lease (租约) of the grocery store her husband serviced had run out and that they had to empty all the freezers that very night. Thinking it was a shame to throw away all this good food, they decided to drop off food to anyone she could think of. Noticing our freezer was pretty empty, Lesley asked to fill it up. Our home was their last stop and anything left would have to be put in our freezer. An hour later, everything finished, I asked her, "When will you come back for all this?" Lesley laughed, "We don't want it back. It is yours! Thanks for helping us out!" Then they waved goodbye and drove away.

    "For helping them out?" We opened our freezer door. Inside were all expensive foods we never bought but often longed to try. We were struggling to buy groceries, yet it was not something we shared with anyone. However, our needs were met in an unexpected way, by that call, "Do you have room for a turkey?"