Dreams can be familiar and strange, fantastical or boring, but some dreams might be connected to the mental processes that help us learn. In a recent study, scientists found a connection between nap time dreams and better memory in people who were learning a new skill.

    In the study, 99 college students between the ages of 18 and 30 each spent an hour on a computer, trying to get through a virtual maze (逃宫). The maze was difficult, and the study participants had to start in a different place each time they tried, making it even more difficult. They were also told to find a particular picture of a tree and remember where it was.

    For the first 90 minutes of a five - hour break, half of the participants stayed awake and half were told to take a short nap. Participants who stayed awake were asked to describe their thoughts. Participants who took a nap were asked about their dreams after sleep and they were awakened within a minute of sleep to describe their dreams.

    Stickgold, a neuroscientist, wanted to know what people were dreaming about when their eyes weren't moving during sleep.Four of the 50 people who slept said their dreams were connected to the maze. Some dreamed about the music that had been playing when they were working; others said they dreamed about seeing people in the maze. When these four people tried the computer maze again, they were able to find the tree faster than before their naps.

    Stickgold suggests the dream itself doesn't' help a person learn, it's the other way around. He suspects that the dream was caused by the brain processes associated with learning.

    All four of the people who dreamed about the task had done poorly the first time,which makes Stickgold wonder if the dreams show up when a person finds a new task particularly difficult. People who had other dreams, or people who didn't' take a nap, didn't show the same improvement.

    Spending money on a vacation may seem like a luxury（奢侈品）—but occasionally, you have to relax yourself. Here's where to go for a good time at an unbelievable value.

    Captiva Island, Florida

    Keep it simple by looking for seashells, or bicycling, jet skiing; you can even hit the tennis courts. The Summer Getaway package offers a fourth night free and rates from $209 a night, making the average for a four-night stay $157.Kids 12 and under eat breakfast free. You'll get a coupon（优惠券）book with more than $250 in savings on resort outlets（经销店）, from watersports, island cruises and more.

    Reyjavik, Iceland

    STA Travel Beats specializes in taking travelers to music festivals around the globe. It has an eight-day tour, Icelandic Beats, that takes you to the Icelandic Geothermal spas（水疗）, UNESCO world heritage sites, and black sand beaches. End your vacation at the Secret Solstice Festival on June 18. The tour is $1,218,not including airfare.

    Malpais, Costa Rica

    You get daily surfing instruction, sunset surf session, and yoga in the outdoor, oceanfront yoga studio in a week-long tour. As you get mind, body, and spirit together, keep it going with healthy meals at the beachfront restaurant. Prices are $2,895 for shared accommodations, $3,095 for private accommodations with shared bath, and $3,595 for private accommodations.

    Waterville Valley, New Hampshire

    Waterville Valley Resort is surrounded by 100 miles of trails in the White Mountain National Forest. If you get a Freedom Pass, you can save about $100 a day during a six-day tour; the pass enables you daily to have a two-hour mountain bike rental, unlimited tennis, a round of golf, and a kayak, canoe, or paddleboard rental. Rates start at $139 a night.

    Last week, two companies, Kitty Hawk and Uber, announced their plans to bring flying cars to reality very soon.

    Imagine never having to worry about traffic, stop lights, or road construction. A flying car would get to a place much faster than one travelling by road. On the other hand, imagine having to avoid drones (无人驾驶飞机) and other flying cars. Also, what if your battery dies when you are in the air? And, how will you know where to land?

    Kitty Hawk is a start-up tech company supported by Google co-founder, Larry Page. According to the Kitty Hawk website, its car will be able to travel at speeds up to 40 kilometers an hour in the air. It says under US aviation law such a machine “does not require registration or a pilot's license and may be flown in uncongested (不拥挤的) areas for recreational purposes.” As of now, the car can only be flown over fresh water.

    Kitty Hawk is making a list of people interested in buying the flying car. They must pay a deposit of US$100. Those who get their names on the list early will receive US$2, 000 off the final cost of the car. However, Kitty Hawk has not yet announced the price. Kitty Hawk expects its first flying cars will go on sale by the end of this year.

    At a conference last week, Uber announced plans for flying taxis to begin carrying passengers. Unlike the Kitty Hawk company, Uber does not plan to build its flying cars. Instead, it will use the resources of partner companies.

    Like the Kitty Hawk car, Uber flying taxis will use electric power. Uber says its flying taxis could travel up to 241 kilometers an hour. The company said that could reduce the travel time between San Francisco and San Jose, California from two hours on the road to 15 minutes in the air.

    Riders could use the Uber app to book a flying taxi to take them to their destinations. The company has not yet said how costly air taxi travel would be compared to road taxi travel.

    I believe children have a very pure sense of humor. Well, I would like to share my experiences with you.

    The other day when I was out with a friend and her daughter Jane at a restaurant, Jane ordered an apple dessert, which was the most attractive dish in that restaurant. However, when she had a bite of the pie, she shouted loudly, "Mom, why does it look good but tastes like rubber?" My friend was uneasy. Then the waiter gave us another dish.

    A child can say funny things. I was at a friend's home for tea and her son, Mark, wanted her to get up. His mom replied, "I can't, because my foot has fallen asleep now." Little Mark then sang a song and asked, "Mom, will it wake up now?" We laughed together.

    The other day we were having an interesting conversation over lunch and my friend, an animal activist (积极分子) , was arguing with another group member. Her son Tommy suddenly stood up, “Mom, people should never be allowed to shoot extinct animals!” That was funny and the child did manage to turn the argument into a pleasant conversation.

    Well, children sometimes really surprise us. I think we can have a lot to learn from them. They can help us understand the simple world through their eyes.

    For nearly thirty years I did parent programs in all of the fifty states, and regardless of the community, there was always a shortage of fathers attending, usually by a 10:1 (mothers、 fathers) ratio. Maybe they were all tending to business, and they obviously didn't think school was any of their business.

    The world is now flat. How's that for a sea change? As Thomas Friedman described it in his book The World Is Flat twenty-five years ago, the power structure of the world consisted of highs and lows. The countries with the power and knowledge were at the top of the mountains and the rest were down in the valleys. A handful of countries (the United States, Britain, Germany, and Japan) ruled the world's economy because they monopolize (垄断)the information and power.

    Then came the Internet. Suddenly the countries down in the valleys were connected to the information network and the work flow. These included India, Eastern Europe, South Korea, Brazil, and China. Don't believe it? Walk into a supermarket and pick up any ten toys, checking each for where it was made. My last count: China, ten out of ten. The world's workforce became "flattened". No more disconnected valleys.

    Since 2000, U.S. manufacturing has lost six million jobs, one-third of its workforce, most of them males. For the first time in history, women hold the majority of jobs in the U.S.

    The only people who don't understand the sea change in business are the fathers and sons still clinging to the image of the male who doesn't need to play school—just play ball. It's been thirty years since that idea had any wings, but too many males are still trying to make it fly. Once the only thing that mattered for men was what they could get out of the ground with their hands. Now it's what they can get out of their heads that counts. And without classroom success, today's male faces an impossible challenge from both intelligent women on the home front and foreigners willing to do the same job for less while sitting in an office in Bangalore or Singapore.

    While it's books that make a library, being in lovely surroundings may provide inspiration and help you work a little bit harder. Here are some of the coolest libraries of the world.

    Library of Birmingham – Birmingham, U.K.

    The new Library of Birmingham is said to be not only Britain's biggest public library, but also the largest in Europe. Designed by Dutch architects, this replacement for the Birmingham Central Library was opened in 2013 and has a wealth of resources within its walls, including adults and kids' libraries, music collections, a Shakespeare Memorial Room, and even a gym room. Gardens crown the roof, while the changing seasons bring variations in the shadows and reflections inside.

    National Library of France – Paris, France

    The National Library of France, which now contains an astonishing collection of 30 million, dates back to the 14th century and this royal library was set up at the Louvre by King Charles V. The Library was moved to Rue de Richelieu site in 1868, with major design work carried out by French architects Henri Labrouste and, following his death, Jean-Louis Pascal. Here, the reading rooms are elegance itself. There are more than just books to be found.

    State Library of New South Wales – Sydney, Australia

    The public State Library of New South Wales holds the honor of being the oldest institution of its kind in Australia. It was originally set up as the Australian Subscription Library in 1826, but it wasn't until 1942 that its permanent home was ready. Designed by Sydney architect Walter Liberty Vernon and completed in 1910, the magnificent sandstone Mitchell Wing is one of the architectural highlights.

Seattle Central Library – Seattle, Washington, USA

    Seattle Central Library's distinctive design ensures it stands out. Architect Rem Koolhaas is one of the names attached to its design. Architects sought to envelop the 11-story building with "a layer of transparency", using a skin of glass and metal. The finished article houses about 1.45 million books and other things, as well as more than 400 computers available for public use. The building, which opened in 2004, was included on the American Institute of Architects' list of America's 150 favorite buildings in 2007.