Researchers in the psychology department at the University of California at Los Angeles (UCLA) have discovered a major difference in the way men and women respond to stress.This difference may explain why men are more likely to suffer from stress related disorders.

    Until now，psychological research has maintained that both men and women have the same “fightorflight” reaction to stress.In other words，individuals either react with aggressive behavior，such as verbal or physical conflict (“fight”)，or they react by withdrawing from the stressful situation (“flight”)．However，the UCLA research team found that men and women have quite different biological and behavioral responses to stress.While men often react to stress in the fightorflight response，women often have another kind of reaction which could be called “tend and befriend.” That is，they often react to stressful conditions by protecting and nurturing their young (“tend”)，and by looking for social contact and support from others—especially other females (“befriend”)．

    Scientists have long known that in the fightorflight reaction to stress，an important role is played by certain hormones(激素) released by the body.The UCLA research team suggests that the female tendorbefriend response is also based on a hormone.This hormone，called oxytocin，has been studied in the context of childbirth，but now it is being studied for its role in the response of both men and women to stress.The principal investigator，Dr.Shelley E．Taylor，explained that “animals and people with high levels of oxytocin are calmer，more relaxed，more social，and less anxious.” While men also secrete(分泌) oxytocin，its effects are reduced by male hormones.

    In terms of everyday behavior，the UCLA study found that women are far more likely than men to seek social contact when they are feeling stressed.They may phone relatives or friends，or ask directions if they are lost.

    The study also showed how fathers and mothers responded differently when they came home to their family after a stressful day at work.The typical father wanted to be left alone to enjoy some peace and quiet.For a typical mother，coping with a bad day at work meant focusing her attention on her children and their needs.

    The differences in responding to stress may explain the fact that women have lower frequency of stressrelated disorders such as high blood pressure or aggressive behavior.The tendandbefriend regulatory(调节的) system may protect women against stress，and this may explain why women on average live longer than men.

    Every year gray whales swim a 10,000 miles round-trip, from the cold waters near Alaska, down the coast of North America to the warn waters near Mexico, and back again. It is one of the longest migrations (迁徙) of any mammal (哺乳动物).

    All day, all summer long, in the cold waters near Alaska, gray whales eat and eat.

    Instead of teeth, gray whales have baleen (鲸须) they use to get food from ocean water. They get big mouthfuls of muck (淤泥) from the ocean floor, then push that muck right back out through their baleen. The mucky water flows through, but tiny animals get trapped in the baleen and licked up.

    When the water starts to freeze, the whales begin their long trip south. They swim night and day, without stopping to eat or rest. During the long journey, migrating whales may push their heads out of the water to see where they are.

    Two months later, the whales reach Mexico. Babies are born here in warm, shallow (浅的) waters called lagoons (濒海湖). Ocean lagoons have no food for the adults, but the babies are safer here than in the open seas. All winter the babies grow big and strong.

In spring first the dads and teenagers leave the lagoons, then the moms with babies. Migrating gray whales swim close to shore, especially moms with babies. The ice is melting up (融化) north, and it's time for the hungry whales to make the long journey back to their summer feeding grounds.

    I found the last outdoor table at my favourite cafe. Reading as I ate my breakfast slowly, I was enjoying the feeling of the cool wind and the warm sun when a table next to me opened up. A woman, who had been standing nearby, clearly waiting for a seat, stepped towards the table. But from the other direction, straight from the parking lot, came a man who got to the table first.

    The woman, with a smile on her face, explained that she'd been keeping her eye on that table for several minutes and had been on her way over. The man, also smiling but determined, told her she was out of luck.

    She stood off the side, clearly disappointed, and greeted her friend with the disappointing news. I sat at my table, taking in the scene, and suddenly I realized that I had an opportunity to be kind.

    I stood up and asked her to come to my table. Quietly, I told her I had seen what had happened, and I was happy to give her my table. I was only going to be there a few more minutes anyway, so I was happy for her and her friend to have the seat.

    "But where will you sit?" she asked. I was almost done eating, I said, and I would find a seat at the counter (柜台) inside. She thanked me and beamed with delight as she invited her friend to sit down.

    Thinking about it as I finished up, I realized that whether or not the woman had acceptable demand for the table was unimportant. The feeling of the situation -- the look of hurt on her face -- had struck me, and I had the ability to do something about it.I just hope that woman's morning at the cafe was great. I know mine was.

    The United States Postal Service(LISPS)is offering a way to people who are interested in seeing tomorrow's mail today. The postal service will send consumers images(图像)of their letters, magazines and other mail before they arrive. The new service is called Informed Delivery. It is an attempt to remain competitive in an ever—changing world.

    Postal service officials say the increased use of email, digital messaging services and social media has made it difficult to stay relevant. David Rupert is a media relations specialist who spoke about the competition the agency now faces. Whether you turn on a television or your computer, or people come to your door with different products and services, all of those are competing for consumers' time and energy, he said.

    Interested users are first required to sign up for Informed Delivery. Once registered, the consumer receives a daily email with virtual(虚拟)images of letters or other things to be delivered. The US Postal Service says it can especially help those who have a mailbox at their local post office, so they know when to get their mail：

    Another postal offering is a service that seeks to make advertising-related mail-often called junk mail—more fun. The service uses virtual and augmented reality(虚拟现实和增强现实)to let consumers interact with their junk mail. Many companies put special coding on their advertising, which can give users an interactive experience. Some companies even put virtual reality eyeglasses in the mail to make their ads come to life. Consumers have mixed reactions to virtual and augmented reality advertising. “You can find some good things within junk mail. It is a good idea. We'll see how it works, ”Postal service user Victor Teah said. But Jocelyn Coatney doesn't think it would change her mind about junk mail. “For some, that might be fun. But for me, it would be useless, ”she said.

    Your next car might drive itself. After years of trials on city streets, driverless vehicles are now on the way. Last month, a driverless bus began carrying passengers through Lyon, France. Most in the automobile industry think self-driving vehicles will be on the road by 2020 or earlier.

    Driverless cars will first be huddled with human-driven cars. But the first places where they will become dominant（统治的）are highly populated urban areas. Many advanced cities are already reducing the role of human-driven cars. Driverless cars will quicken that process and will bring us enormous benefits.

    Driverless cars will reduce accidents by around 90 percent. That's big—the annual deaths on the world's roads are about 1.2 million a year. Pollution and carbon emissions will drop, because urban driverless cars will be electric.

    On the other hand, driverless cars will cause problems. Over the next 20 years, the mostly low-skilled men who now drive trucks, taxis and buses will see their jobs reduced. Traditional carmakers are especially scared. The cars of the future might be made by tech companies such as Apple, Baidu and Google. Imagine Germany, where automobile making is the largest industry.

    Dramatic changes are coming, and driverless cars could arrive by 2020. But governments have barely begun thinking about it. Only 6 percent of the biggest US cities have taken them into their long-term planning. A decade ago anyone hardly saw the Smartphone coming. Now what about the driverless cars?

With such a strong artistic heritage, it's no surprise that England knocks it out of the park when it comes to world-class art galleries. These are the galleries you need to add to your must-visit list.

Royal Academy of Arts (RA), London

Not your standard gallery, the Royal Academy of Arts is led by artists to promote not just the appreciation of art, but its practice. It is world-famous for hosting some exhibitions that get everyone talking. Besides, what sets the RA apart is its engagement with the public through participatory experiences, allowing visitors to not only view art but become part of it in innovative ways.

Sainsbury Centre for Visual Arts, Norwich

Sitting on the edge of the University of East Anglia's campus, the Sainsbury Centre holds a collection of remarkable works of art spanning over 2,000 years. Inside the seminal Norman Foster building, you'll find artworks from around the world, including some stunning pieces of European modern art by Degas, Francis Bacon, and Alberto Giacometti.

Yorkshire Sculpture Park, West Yorkshire

Tearing up the rulebook when it comes to how we traditionally view art, the Yorkshire Sculpture Park strives to break down barriers by showing works from British and international artists in the open air. Set in hundreds of acres of West Yorkshire parkland, you'll see sculptures by some of the leading artists of the 20th century.

Whitworth, Manchester

After a sky-high £15 million development, the Whitworth is becoming one of the premier galleries in the north of England. Making full use of its picturesque park setting, the gallery has a beautiful art garden and a sculpture terrace (露台), all waiting to be explored. Inside the gallery, you can view an exciting programme of ever-changing exhibitions.