Recently there has been a discussion on a website about “what would you miss most and least if you were stuck on a desert island?”

    Here are some of the answers:

Post 1

    Steve USA—Hi, everyone. What would you miss most and least if you were stuck on a desert island? For me, it would be the changing seasons in New England. I guess this will sound stupid but I'd probably miss the rain, too. I wouldn't miss getting up at six every day to go to work, though! What about you?

Post 2

    Tomas Germany—Good question. Steve, I think I'd miss different types of bread, and shopping at the supermarket. I'd miss the food most. What would I miss least? My mobile phone—I'd like to be completely quiet—at least for a little while.

Post 3

    Paola Italy—I would miss the company of people because I know I'd like to have someone to share experiences with. I'd go mad on my own. And I sure wouldn't miss junk mail—I hate coming home every evening and a pile of junk mail in my post box.

Post 4

    Miko Japan—Hi, I would miss Manga cartoon, the Internet and Japanese food, like sushi. I'd also miss TV shows and shopping for clothes… In fact, I'd miss everything.

Post 5

    Roger UK—I would miss my daily newspaper and listening to the news on TV and radio. I'd feel very cut off if I didn't know what was happening in the world. What I'd miss least would be traffic jams in the city, particularly my journey to work.

Post 6

    Jayne Russia—Why hasn't anyone mentioned their family? I'd be lost without my husband and two kids. They're the most important for me. And I can't get started in the morning without a cup of black coffee. I wouldn't miss doing the housework!

Post 7

    Jaime Mexico—It would have to be music. I couldn't live without my music. I wouldn't miss going to school at all or doing homework!

    When people today talk about a tiny house, they probably mean the trendy living space that's about the size of a shed (棚). But you would have to be five inches tall to live in the original tiny houses. Dollhouse(小房子)，which have been around for several centuries, don't offer shelter to real people, but they provide a vivid（生动的） experience of life in times and places both real and imaginary.

    The National Building Museum in Washington, D.C., lets visitors time travel in this tiny world through ―Small Stories: At Home in a Dollhouse,” an exhibit that opened Saturday. Visitors can see twelve dollhouses from the Victoria and Albert Museum in London, England, which contain amazing tiny furnishings. But those people who put together the exhibit also wanted visitors to know the characters inside.

    “It's 300 years of British homes told through their inhabitants (居民),” said Alice Sage, who is in charge of the London museum.

    So as visitors look inside the Tate Baby House, a fancy townhouse from 1760, they can push a button to hear a young woman get a lecture from her mother on the proper way to run a home. In the Killer Cabinet house, a servant named Betsy complains about the problems of city life in the 1830s. “We've got the cat to keep the rats away,” she says.

    That dollhouse was John Killer's gift to his wife and five daughters. The girls were allowed to play with the house, but they probably also learned a few lessons, Sage said.

    “The kitchen of the house would have been the perfect way to teach the girls about the management of a home,” she said, noting the tiny dishes and pots.

    Those who prefer a more modern look won't be disappointed. There are two rooms displaying a white dollhouse from 1935, an apartment house from the 1960s and a brightly colored 21st-century design.

    The end of the exhibit shows how imaginative design sometimes works best in small spaces.

    The Building Museum asked twenty-four artists, designers and architects from across the United States to each create a “dream room” from the past, present or future. Some of these unique small rooms were made using traditional furnishings, others from materials such as clay, insects, 3D-printing, and even peeps marshmallow candies!

    Scientists have found living organisms(有机体) that could be 50,000 years old recently. The organisms were found in a hot, but beautiful cave system in Naica, Mexico. These ancient life forms can be seen only with a microscope, which proves they are probably microbes(微生物).

    Penelope Boston leads the Astrobiology Institute at NASA, the space agency of the United States. These ancient organisms are able to exist by eating minerals such as iron and manganese. If the findings are confirmed, they will show how microbes can survive in extreme conditions.

    Researchers have been studying ancient microbes for nine years. Forty different kinds of microbes and some viruses were found in the underground area this time. The genetic(基因的) structures of these organisms are different from those of their nearest relatives –viruses. That is similar to that humans are genetically different from mushrooms growing in forest. The caves in Naica are 800 kilometers deep. Before the miners began working in the caves, the area was isolated from the surface and the outside world.

    Some of the caves are as big as the large religious centers built during Europe's Middle Ages. There are crystals(晶体) covering the walls. Scientists must wear special clothing to keep cool. And the clothing keeps the crystals safe from human germs or other damage. The researchers could only work for about 20 minutes at a time before they have to go to a room that is 28 degrees Celsius to cool down.

    NASA officials would not let Boston share her findings with scientific experts until the last week's announcement. So scientists could not say much about the findings. But Norine Noonan, a biologist at the University of South Florida, said she believed them. “Why are we surprised?” Noonan asked, “As a biologist, I would say life on Earth is extremely tough and versatile.” “What's more, these organisms are not the oldest life forms on Earth. Scientists published studies about living microbes that may be 500,000 years old several years ago,” she added.

    Many kids don't drink enough water daily, according to a new study. The study's lead author, Erica Kenney, at first planned to look into the amount of sugary drinks kids were drinking in schools. However, during her research she found that many kids were simply not drinking enough water.

    Kenney and her team examined data from a group of 4,000 children, aged 6 to19. The data was taken from the National Health and Nutrition Survey, a study on the health of children in the United States done each year by the Center for Disease Control and Prevention.

    While looking through the survey results, she noticed that more than half of the kids who took part in the study were dehydrated (脱水的). Of that group, boys were 76% more likely than girls not to have enough water in their system. Nearly one quarter of the kids in the survey reported drinking no plain water at all.

    “These findings highlight (突出) a possible health issue that wasn't given a lot of attention in the past,” Kenney said in a statement. “Even though for most of these kids this is not an immediate and great health risk, this is an issue that could really be reducing quality of life and well-being for many children and youth.”

    The United States-National Agriculture Library says average kids need between 10 to 14 cups of water every day. This water can come from a mix of drinks and foods that contain high amounts of water, such as celery, melons or tomatoes. It is also suggested that fluids (液体) come from water instead of sugary drinks that are high in calories and can lead to weight problems.

    When we do the same movements with our bodies over and over again, we overuse some muscles. And that overuse can lead to strain(紧张)and injury. Sometimes those problems can come from doing sports. But exercise experts say they are now seeing another cause for muscle problems: hand-held technology devices(设备).

    Staring down at your phone or tablet for long periods of time puts great tension on your neck and spine(脊椎). Many people who use tech devices also bend their shoulders forward. Experts say this posture(姿势)puts strain on the entire upper body. Muscle strain linked to hand-held technology has become such a common condition that it now has a name: tech neck.

    Kimberly Fielding, an exercise teacher in New York City, explains that constantly looking down at our devices creates an unnatural bend in our spine. This can cause nerve pain and other problems. “A lot of the curves of the neck can change, so instead of the neck spine going inward, the curve can be a little bit different and it causes nerve pain and disc herniation(椎间盘突出)and different muscle tension headaches — different things that really can reduce quality of life.”

    Fielding created a class to directly solve the problem of tech neck. The class uses different exercises to release tension in the upper body and strengthen back and neck muscles. Fielding says these exercises may feel uncomfortable in the beginning because the neck muscles may have become weak.

    However, you don't need to take a class like Fielding's. You can take simple steps to improve tech neck. For a quick fix, hold your phone at eye level. At the same time, take breaks from using your technology by standing up and stretching your legs often. Also, give your eyes a break by closing them throughout the day.

    I remember little of the journey which started so early in the morning. I only know that the day seemed extremely long, and that we appeared to travel over hundreds of miles. Calmed by the sound of the coach wheels, I fell asleep. But I had not slept long when the coach stopped, the door was opened, and I saw a servant standing there.

    "Is there a little girl called Jane Eyre here?" she asked. I answered "Yes," and was then lifted out. My trunk handed down, the coach instantly drove away. I looked about me. I could see a house with many windows. There were lights burning in some of them. We went up a wide pebbly path, splashing wet, and were admitted at a door. Then the servant led me through a passage into a room where she left me. I stood and warmed my frozen fingers at the fire and looked around. There was no candle, but the light from the fire showed papered walls, a carpet, curtains and gleaming furniture. Then the door opened, and a tall lady with dark hair, dark eyes entered followed by another who looked younger. "The child is very young to be sent alone," said she, putting her candle down on the table. She looked at me for a minute or two and then added, "She had better go to bed soon; she looks tired."

    Led by the younger lady, Miss Miller, through passage after passage, we came, at last, to a long, wide room filled with the hum of many voices. There were many tables, and seated all round on benches were a large number of girls aged from nine to twenty. Seen in the dim light of the candles, their number appeared above eighty. Each was dressed in a brown old-fashioned dress of cheap material. It was their hour of study.

    Miss Miller signed to me to sit on a bench near the door, then walking up to the top of the long room she cried out "Monitors, collect the lesson-books and put them away!"

    Four tall girls arose and went round, gathered the books and removed them. Miss Miller again ordered, "Monitors, fetch the supper-trays!" The tall girls went out and returned presently, each bearing a tray. Some food and water was in the middle of each tray. The food was handed round and everyone drank from the same mug. When it came to my turn, I drank too, for I was thirsty, but I did not touch the food. From there I was taken to my hard bed where I thankfully fell asleep immediately.