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.

    Our risk of cancer rises dramatically as we age. So it makes sense that the elderly should be routinely screened for new tumors — or doesn't it?

    While such vigilant(警觉的) tracking of cancer is a good thing in general, researchers are increasingly questioning whether all of this testing is necessary for the elderly. With the percentage of people over age 65 expected to nearly double by 2050, it's important to weigh the health benefits of screening against the risks and costs of routine testing.

    In many cases, screening can lead to additional biopsies(活检) and surgeries to remove cancer, which can cause side effects, while the cancers themselves may be slow-growing and may not pose serious health problems in patients' remaining years. But the message that everyone must screen for cancer has become so ingrained(根深蒂固的) that when health care experts recommended that women under 50 and over 74 stop screening for breast cancer, it caused a riotous reaction among doctors, patients and advocacy groups.

    It's hard to uproot deeply held beliefs about cancer screening with scientific data. Certainly, there are people over age 75 who have had cancers detected by routine screening, and gained several extra years of life because of treatment. And clearly, people over age 75 who have other risk factors for cancer, such as a family history or prior personal experience with the disease, should continue to get screened regularly. But for the remainder, the risk of cancer, while increased at the end of life, must be balanced with other factors like remaining life expectancy(预期寿命).

    A recent study suggests that doctors start to make more objective decisions about who will truly benefit from screening—especially considering the explosion of the elderly that will soon swell our population.

    It's not an easy calculation to make, but one that make sense for the whole patient. Dr. Otis Brawley said, “Many doctors are ordering these tests purely to cover themselves. We need to think about the rational(合理的) use of health care and stop talking about the rationing of health care.”

    That means making some difficult decisions with elderly patients, and going against the misguided belief that when it comes to health care, more is always better.

TaIL Spin

    Two dolphins race around in a big pool in the Ocean Park. The smaller dolphin Grace, shown off a few of her tricks, turning around and waving hello to the crowd. The most amazing thing about her, however, is that she's even swimming at all. She doesn't have a tail.

Grace lost her tail as a baby when she got caught up in a fish trap. When the dolphin arrived at the Ocean Park in December 2005, she was fighting for her life. “Is she going to make it?” Her trainer, Abbey Stone, feared the worst. Grace did make it — but her tail didn't. She ended up losing her flukes and the lower part of her peduncle.

Over the past six years, she has learned to swim without her tail. Dolphins swim by moving their flukes and peduncle up and down. Grace taught herself to move another way—like a fish! She pushed herself forward through the water by moving her peduncles from side to side.

    The movement put harmful pressure on Grace's backbone. So a company offered to create a man-made tail for her. The tail had to be strong enough to stay on Grace as she swam but soft enough that it wouldn't hurt her.

    The first time Grace wore the artificial tail. She soon shook it off and let it sink in the bottom of the pool. Now, she is still learning to use the tail. Some days she wears it for an hour at a time, others not at all. “The tail isn't

necessary for her to feel comfortable,” says Stone, “but it helps to keep that range of motion(动作) and build muscles(肌肉).”

    Now, the dolphin is about to get an even happier ending. This month, Grace will star in Dolphin Tale, a film that focus on her rescue and recovery. Her progress has inspired more than just a new movie. Many people travel from near and far to meet her. Seeing Grace swim with her man-made tail gives people so much courage.

    Phantom Gourmet Food Festival

    Saturday, September 24, noon - 4 pm

    Lansdowne & Ipswich Streets

    617-635-2120

    Ages 21+

    $40/ in advance; $50, day of event

    The Phantom Gourmet presents a giant afternoon Food Festival to take place in the streets, bars, and clubs around Fenway Park. Ticket holders will have access to several food samplings, entrance to the streets and bars, and admission to nightclub parties. Drinks are not included with tickets. Also, if you want to fit in, Phantom Gourmet suggests wearing something purple.

      The 4th annual Fashion Show

      Saturday, September 24，8 pm

    Cyclorama at Boston Center for the Arts, 539 Tremont St., Boston 02 116

    617-426- 5000

    $50- $175

    As part of Boston Fashion week 2011, the event presents the 4th annual Fashion Show, which will show some of the best designers in the fashion industry. Contestants, Jery Tam, Maya Luz, and Keith Lissner (The Fashion Show, Bravo TV) also plan to be present.

    Regent Theatre's 95th Anniversary Celebration

    Sunday, September 25, 4 pm

    The Regent Theatre, 7 Medford St. , Arlington 02476

    781-646-4849

    All ages

    $10/ in advance, $15 / day of show, $5 / kids under 12

    The Regent Theatre presents a show in honor of their 9Sth anniversary. Entertainment for the evening will include musicians, local singers, dancers, storytellers, comedians and famous bands. The show will be hosted by Dan Foley of the Airborne Comedians.

    An Evening with Donald Rumsfeld

    Monday, September 26, 7 pm

    The Historic Old South Meeting House, 310 Washington St., Boston 02108 617-482- 6439

    $50

    WRKO AM680 presents An Evening with Donald Rumsfeld, featuring a talk by the former US Secretary of Defense. Rumsfeld will discuss details of his book Known and Unknown , including the events surrounding the September 11attacks and other topics involving the United States government. Tickets are $50 and include an autographed (签名的) copy of Known and Unknown.

    Teachers' Day is, interestingly, not celebrated on the same day all over the world. In some countries it is marked by a holiday, in others it is a working day.

    International Teachers' Day is celebrated on October 5. Being held ever since 1994, it is in honor of teachers' organizations worldwide. Its aim is to encourage supports for teachers and to meet the needs of students.

    China In 1939, Teachers' Day was set for August 27, Confucius' birthday. In1951, the celebration was stopped. However, it was founded again in 1985, and the day was changed to September 10.

    India   Teachers' Day is celebrated on September 5 in honour of Dr. Sarvepalli Radhakrishnan, the second president of India, whose birthday falls on that day.

    Russia ― In Russia, Teachers' Day was celebrated on the first Sunday of October between 1965 and 1994. Since 1994, the day is observed on the October 5, just the same day as World Teachers Day.

    The US   In the US, Teachers' Day is non-official holiday. It is celebrated on the Tuesday of the first full week of May. A number of activities are organized in schools to honor teachers. The celebrations can continue for the whole week of May.

    Thailand   In Thailand, National Teachers' Day is celebrated every year on January 16. The first Teachers' Day was held in 1957. The day is a holiday in schools.

The Alexander technique

    Until earlier this year, I didn't know anything about the Alexander technique—and saw no reason to think I should. One day, the backache I regularly suffered was more painful. I was brought up to think that the preferred way of dealing with aches is to do nothing and hope they'll go away, but I eventually went to the doctor. After examining me, he said, "You actually have bad posture (姿势). Go off and learn the Alexander technique." Three months later I could walk straighter and sit better.

    The Alexander technique is a way of learning how you can get rid of harmful tension in your body. The teaching focuses on the neck, head and back. It trains you to use your body less severely and carry out the movements that we do all the time with less effort. There is little effort in the lessons themselves, which sets apart the Alexander technique from yoga or pilates, which are exercise-based. A typical lesson involves standing in front of a chair and learning to sit and stand with minimum effort. You spend some time lying on a bench with your knees bent to straighten the spine (脊椎) and relax your body while the teacher moves your arms and legs to train you to move them correctly.

    The technique helps to break the bad habits accumulated over years. Try folding your arms the opposite way to normal. This is an example of a habit the body has formed which can be hard to break. Many of us carry our heads too far back. The head weighs four to six kilos, so any inappropriate posture can cause problems for the body. The technique teaches you to let go of the muscles holding the head back, allowing it to go back to its natural place on the top of our spines.

    So who was Alexander and how did he come up with the technique? Frederick Alexander, an Australian actor born in 1869, found in his youth that he had vocal (声音的) problems during performances. He analyzed himself and realized his posture was bad. He worked on improving it, with excellent results. He brought his technique to London and opened a teacher-training school, which is still successful today.

    So if you're walking along the road one day with shoulders bent forward, feeling weighed down by your troubles, give a thought to the Alexander technique. It will help you walk tall again.