In addition to the official basketball world, various other types of basketball are practiced around the world.

Wheelchair Basketball

    Wheelchair basketball was invented in 1946 by former American basketball players, who, after wartime injury, wanted once again to experience the excitement of a highly athletic sport within a team environment. It is now played in more than 80 countries by over 25,000 men, women and children with a physical disability which prevents them from playing competitive basketball on their feet.

http://www.iwbf.org

Beach Basketball

    Beach basketball is an exciting, non-stop action game played in the sand. The game was born more than forty years ago on the physical education fields of Gulf Shores School. This kind of basketball, invented by Philip Bryant, has grown from an extremely effective skill improvement game to a very popular, widespread competitive sport.

http://www.beachbasketball.com

Street Basketball

    Street Basketball or streetball is mainly played as a leisure game, but streetball players can also compete against each other. There are no specific streetball rules and the game is played outdoors; the players make up their own rules to play. Streetball is very popular among younger players and allows players to publicly show their own individual skills.

http://www.streetball.com

Deaf Basketball

    Basketball for the deaf (unable to hear in one or both ears) men and women has been played since the early 1920s. The game today has exactly the same rules as FIBA (International Basketball Federation).

http://www.dibf.org

Bankshot Basketball

    Bankshot is a new game of skill and challenge that is often described as “mini golf, but with a basketball.” Bankshot is the only sports system that allows the able-bodied and athletes with a disability to play together at the same time. This game is about no running, jumping, or body contact(接触)and relies on the shooting skill.

http://www.bankshot.com

    A new study of 8,000 young people in the Journal of Health and Social Behavior shows that although love can make adults live healthily and happily, it is a bad thing for young people. Puppy love(早恋)may bring stress for young people and can lead to depression. The study shows that girls become more depressed than boys, and younger girls are the worst of all.

    The possible reason for the connection between love and higher risk of depression for girls is “loss of self”. According to the study，even though boys would say “lose themselves in a romantic relationship”, this “loss of self” is much more likely to lead to depression when it happens to girls. Young girls who have romantic relationships usually like hiding their feelings and opinions. They won't tell that to their parents.

    Dr Marianm Kaufman，an expert on young people problems, says 15% to 20% young people will have depression during their growing. Trying romance often causes the depression. She advises kids not to jump into romance too early. During growing up, it is important for young people to build b friendships and a b sense of self. She also suggests the parents should encourage their kids to keep close to their friends, attend more interesting school activities and spend enough time with family.

    Parents should watch for signs of depression—eating or mood changes—and if they see signs from their daughters or sons, they need to give help. The good news is that the connection between romance and depression seems to become weak with age. Love will always make us feel young, but only maturity(成熟)gives us a chance to avoid its bad side effects.

    In Europe many people died during the Second World War. As a result, at the end of the war there were many orphans (孤儿) there. A man called Hermann Gmeiner wanted to help these children. His idea was simple. He wanted orphans to have a home, and he wanted them to have the care and kindness of parents. Gmeiner asked people to give him some money. With this money he built the first SOS Children's Village at Imst, in Austria. It opened in1949. This is how the SOS stand for “Save Our Souls（灵魂）.” This means, “Please help us!” An SOS Children' village gives help to orphans. Hermann Gmeiner's idea for helping orphans soon spread（传播）all over the world. By 1983 there were 170 SOS Children's Villages in the world. People in many countries give money to help the villages.

    Today the children from the first village have grown up. Now some of them work in other SOS Children's Villages. In SOS Villages orphans live in family groups. There are several houses in each village. The biggest village has 40 or 50 houses! Between seven and ten children live in a house. A woman lives with each group of children and looks after them. She gives the children a lot of love and kindness. She cooks meals for them and makes comfortable, happy home for them.

    Of course, the children don't spend all their time in the village. They go to school; they go out with their friends. But the village gives them a home—sometimes for the first time in their lives.

    When I lived in Spain, some Spanish friends of mine The family you have chosen decided to visit England by car. Before they left, they asked me for advice about how to find accommodation. I suggested that they should stay at 'bed and breakfast' houses, because this kind of accommodation gives a foreign visitor a good chance to speak English with the family. My friends listened to my advice, but they came back with some funny stories.

"We didn't stay at bed and breakfast houses," they said, "because we found that most families were away on holiday."

I thought this was strange. Finally I understood what had happened. My friends spoke little English, and they thought 'VACANCIES' meant 'holidays', because the Spanish word for 'holidays" is 'vacancies'. So they did not go to house where the sign outside said 'VACANCIES', which in English means there are free rooms. Then my friends went to house where the sign said 'NO VACANCLES', because they thought this meant the people who owned the house were not away on holiday. But they found that these houses were all full. As a result, they stayed at hotels!

We laughed about this and about mistakes my friends made in reading other signs. In Spanish, the word 'DIVERSION' means fun. In English, it means that workmen are repairing the road, and that you must take a different road. When my friends saw the word 'DIVERSION' on a road sign, they thought they were going to have fun. Instead, the road ended in a large hole.

English people have problems too when they learn foreign languages. Once in Paris, when someone offered me some more coffee, I said "Thank you" in French. I meant that I would like some more. However, to my surprise the coffee pot was taken away! Later I found out that "Thank you" in French means "No, thank you."

    From Antigua to Zanzibar, these spots promise an incredible trip for 2019.

    Antigua, Guatemala

    "Antigua is worth every penny, but that doesn't mean you'll have to empty your wallet," says Hudson. There are plenty of budget-conscious activities. It won't cost you a coin to visit Santo Domingo del Cerro, an outdoor sculpture park. Wanting something sweet? Head to ChocoMuseo. Admission is free and so are the samples!

    Odessa, Ukraine

    Odessa is having a bit of a tourism boom nationwide-not that we're surprised, given its sandy beaches and pastel-colored buildings-but it's still fairly under the order for international audiences. You can also count on this port city for affordable fun. Tickets to the Odessa Opera House start at a mere $ 2!

    Bogotá, Colombia

    "Travelers on budget will find Colombia's vast capital, far more of a bargain and every bit as fascinating," says Hudson. "It's free to visit Museo de Oro and on Sundays many of the big roads are closed to accommodate food carts, street entertainers, and pedestrians."

    Zanzibar

    Zanzibar attracts vacationers with its white sand beaches, greenish-blue tides, colorful coral reefs, and oceanfront seaside. Of course, wandering in historic Stone Town is pretty appealing too. Either way, you needn't spend a penny in this amazing place. It's also worth noting that Jozani Forest is the only place in the world you can see endangered red colobus monkeys.

    When it comes to medical care, many patients and doctors believe "more is better." But what they do not realize is that overtreatment—too many scans, too many blood tests, too many procedures—may bring harm. Sometimes a test leads you down a path to more and more testing, some of which may be invasive, or to treatment for things that should be left alone.

    Terrence Power, for example, complained that after his wife learned she had Wegener's disease, an uncommon disorder of the immune system, they found it difficult to refuse testing recommended by her doctor. The doctor insisted on office visits every three weeks, even when she was feeling well. He frequently ordered blood tests and X－rays, and repeatedly referred her to specialists for even minor complaints. Even when tests came back negative, more were ordered, and she was hospitalized as prevention when she developed a cold. She had as many as 25 doctor visits during one six－month period. The couple was spending about $30,000 a year for her care.

    After several years of physical suffering and near financial ruin from the medical costs, the couple began questioning the treatment after discussing with other patients in online support groups. "It's a really hard thing to determine when they've crossed the line," Mr. Power said. "You think she's getting the best care in the world, but after a while you start to wonder: What is the purpose?" Mr. Power then spoke with his own primary care doctor, who advised him to find a new specialist to oversee Mrs. Power's care. Under the new doctor's care, the regular testing stopped and Mrs. Power's condition stabilized. Now she sees the doctor only four or five times a year.