I was very disappointed not to be able to go to the jazz concert last Friday. The advertisement in the paper said that you could buy tickets at the theatre box in Richland Hills any day between 10:00 and 4:00. Since I work from 9:00 to 5:30, the only time I could go to the theatre was during my 45-minute lunch break.

    Unfortunately, the theatre is on theother side of the town, and the bus service between my office and Richland Hills is not very good. Butif you are lucky, you can make the round trip in 45 minutes. Last Monday, Istood at the bus stop for 15 minutes waiting for the bus, By the time I saw onecome around the corner, there was not enough time left to make the trip.

     So I gave up and went back to the office. The same thing happened on Tuesday, and again next day. On Thursday, my luck changed. I got on a bus right away and arrived at the theatre in exactly 20 minutes. When I got there, however, I found along line of people at the box office, I heard one man say he had been waitingin line for over an hour. Realizing I would not have enough timeto wait in line. I caught the next bus and headed back across the town.

    By Friday I realized my only hope was tomake the trip by taxi, it was expensive, but I felt it would be worth it tohear the concert. The trip by taxi only took 10 minutes, but felt like an hour to me. When I got to the theatre, I was relieved to see that nobody was waiting in line. The reason, however, I quickly discovered, was that they had already sold all the tickets.

     “ Can we go now, Momma?” little Susie asked, pulling on her mom's arm. Her mother did not answer, only stared blankly at the scene below. Crowds of people marched about with what looked like picket(警戒队) signs. Other people gathered around them, shouting angry words that she couldn't make out from this distance. This relatively small town in Missouri had never seen so much action. She and Susie were standing at the top of the only high rise building in town for Susie loved to try to find their house among the rows and rows of little boxes.

    “Momma? ” Susie said in a frightened voice, two seconds before a gun shot went off, making her scream at the top of her lungs. Her mom grabbed her and held her over her shoulder as the tears started pouring. “What was that? I'm scared, Momma!!”

    “Sh Sh Sh,” her momma whispered in a soothing tone, rubbing her daughter's hair. “It's just a bad dream, baby. She said both to herself and Susie.

    Susie looked at her with confused eyes at the same time a fight broke out among some members of each group. The little girl gasped in surprise. “Why are those ants fighting , Momma?”

    “Those aren't ants, sweetie; they're people, or, at least they're supposed to be.”

    “I don't understand what's going on! I'm scared!!” the four-year-old child clung to her momma. “It looks like they're dancing, momma.”

    “Yeah, it sort of does, doesn't it?” her mother said with an air of disbelief. How could the expression of heated anger be so beautiful? It was so wondrously unexpected that it brought soft tears to her eyes.

    “Why are you scared, Momma? It's just bugs dancing,” Susie said with an innocent smile, wiping away her mother's tears.

    Some of the world's most significant problems never hit headlines. One example comes from agriculture. Food riots（暴动）and hunger make news. But the trend lying behind these matters is rarely talked about. This is the decrease in the growth in production of some of the world's major crops. A new study by the University of Minnesota and McGill University in Montreal looks at where, and how far, this decline is occurring.

    The authors take a vast number of data points for the four most important crops: rice, wheat, corn and soyabeans. They find that on between 24% and 39% of all harvested areas, the improvement inproduction that took place before the 1980s slowed down in the 1990s and 2000s.

    There are two worrying features of the slowdown. One is that it has been particularly sharp in the world's most populous countries, India and China. Their ability to feed themselves has been an important source of relative stability both within the countries and on world food markets. That self-sufficiency (自给自足) cannot be taken for granted if productions continue to slow down.

    Second, production growth has been lower in wheat and rice than in corn and soyabeans. This is problematic because wheat and rice are more important as foods, accounting for around half of all calories consumed. Corn and soyabeans are more important as feed grains. The authors note that "we have preferentially focused our crop improvement efforts on feeding animals and cars rather than on crops that feed people and are the basis of food security in much of the world."

    The report also states the more optimistic findings of another new paper which suggests that the world will not have to dig up a lot more land for farming in order to feed 9 billion people in 2050, as the Food and Agriculture Organisation has argued.

    Instead, it says, thanks to slowing population growth, land currently ploughed（犁）up for crops might be able to revert (回返) to forest or wilderness. This could happen. The trouble is that the prediction assumes continued improvements in productions, which may not actually happen.

Things to do in Cabo Corrientes, Jalisco, Mexico

    Majahuitas Island Tour

    Duration: 6h 30m

    Let yourself be spoiled by the nature in the Majahuitas Island (Natural Reserve) while you do different beach and sea activities, such as Snorkeling (潜游), Kayak (划独木舟)Tour and more. Eight delicious options from our menu will please your taste during lunch time, also your favorite drink will be prepared in our bar.

    Las Marietas Eco Discovery

    Duration: 6h

    Snorkel, swim, and kayak through the beautiful rock formations around the Marietas Islands. Beloved by Jacques Cousteau for their rich marine life and clear waters, this underwater playground is an ideal place to spend the afternoon.

    Follow up your snorkeling adventure with a guided kayak trip. Learn about the islands' geologic past and keep your eyes peeled for migrating whales and playful groups of dolphins. Back on the boat, have a tasty deli-style lunch featuring delicious sandwiches and salads, or kick back with a drink from the open bar while your crew set a course for your return to port.

    Yelapa & Majahuitas Catamaran Tour

    Duration: 7h+

    Set sail from Puerta Vallarta aboard a luxurious catamaran with the vast Pacific Ocean ahead and a refreshing sea breeze surrounding you. Spend your morning snorkeling and exploring the peaceful cove of Majahuitas. This coral reef and tropical fish-filled coastline is only accessible by boat, making it one of Puerto Vallarta's best-kept hidden treasures.

    Sayulita Escape

    Duration: 3h

    Hop on a powerful UTV (utility task vehicle) to explore Sayulita, a hip and relaxed beach town not far from Vallarta. Ride over muddy back roads and a riverbed to reach the small community famous for its laid-back atmosphere. Soon after hitting the main road, your guide turns onto one of the dusty forest paths. Pass by farms, fields, and a riverbed before reaching an isolated beach. When you are ready, a picnic lunch, open bar, and knowledgeable crew await your return to the catamaran.

It's generally believed that people act the way they do because of their personalities and attitudes .They recycle their garbage because the care about the environment .They pay $5 for a caramel brulée latte because they like expensive coffee drinks.

It's undeniable that behavior comes from our inner dispositions (性情), but in many instances we also draw inferences about who we are, as suggested by the social psychologist Daryl Bem , by observing our own behavior .We can be strangers to ourselves .If we knew our own minds, why would we need to guess what our preferences are from our behavior? If our minds were an open book, we would know exactly how much we care about the environment or like lattes .Actually, we often need to look to our behavior to figure out who we are.

Moreover, we don't just use our behavior to learn about our particular types of character—we infer characters that weren't there before .Our behavior is often shaped by little pressures around us, which we fail to recognize .Maybe we recycle because our wives and neighbors would disapprove if we didn't .Maybe we buy lattes in order to impress the people around us .We should not mistakenly believe that we always behave as a result of some inner disposition.

Whatever pressures there can be or inferences one can make, people become what they do, though it may not be in compliance (符合) with their true desires .Therefore, we should all bear in mind Kurt Vonnegut's advice: "We are what we pretend to be, so we must be careful about what we pretend to be."

The world continues to inspire travel writers. Standout books for the year ahead are to please all types of our readers.

A Search for Nearby Nature and Wilderness

World explorer Alastair Humphries spent a year examining every square metre of a 12-mile radius (半径) around his home in London and found wonder close to hand. A former Adventurer of the Year, Humphries has cycled around the globe and rowed across the Atlantic Ocean. His latest book, though, is a celebration of slowing things down and discovering a small wild world right on your doorstep. It's also a cry to revitalize London's neglected natural places in urban areas and our right to wander in them. £12.99, Eye Books.

My Adventures in Travel and Publishing

Travel publisher, Hilary Bradt's guidebook company celebrates its 50th anniversary this year. The first Bradt Travel Guide was born in1974: BackpackingAlong Ancient Ways Peru & Bolivia which included some of the very first descriptions of the Inca Trail. Since then, Bradt has published many guidebooks about the farthest parts of the planet — Mongolia and Madagascar among them. Pioneering backpacking travels before the concept was widespread, he presents this book looking back at a lifetime of trials and stimulation in the wild. £20.00, Bradt.

True Stories of Nature, Adventure & Connection

Environmental writer Laurie King has gathered a collection of original non-fiction stories, illustrations, and poems examining the human connection with nature. He takes a walk across the desert and discovers how hermits (隐士) survived in a South American forest. These exciting stories aim to inspire you to find your wild animal soul and rethink your relationship with nature. £14.99, Watkins Publishing.

Writers Walk the World

From the streets of London to the paths of Japan, the jungles of Ghana and beyond, Duncan Minshull collects the works of more than fifty walker-writers who have traveled the world's seven continents on foot. From the 1500s to the present day comes a memorable band of explorers and adventurers, scientists and craftsmen, pleasure-seekers and literary drifters sharing their experiences and asking themselves a question — why travel this way in the first place? £15.99, Notting Hill Editions.