Augusto Esquivel is a sculptor who, in his own words, is “crazy with comparisons of reality and potential and the balance between them.” Perhaps the best example of what he's talking about are his most famous creations: the suspended(悬挂的) button sculptures.

    Made entirely from buttons hanging on various lengths of string, Esquivel's sculptures are made to look like common objects: a piano, a gumball machine, and even a toilet. If it wasn't for the clear string hanging above, these objects, these sculptures, would look solid, yet you can put your hands right through them. The process starts with him deciding on a subject and setting the acrylic （丙烯酸树脂）from where the buttons are being suspended. He buys buttons of different shapes and sizes, paints them with spray paint, and carefully hangs them. After that, it's a manner of hanging each individual button, which takes a lot of time. For his piano, for example, he individually hung over 60 pounds worth of tiny buttons.

    Esquivel's sculptures, while mostly housed inside art galleries, perfectly capture one of the main principles of street art: something that is eye-catching and something that invites interaction. Often the best sculptures outside the art galleries aren't the ones behind guards and fencing, but the ones people can go right up to and touch. In Vancouver, a series of laughing old men are attracting people for pictures and to just generally hang around, but the people who simply walk by and see the sculptures almost always leave with a smile on their face. That's good street art: it draws the viewer in rather than relying on a gallery to draw in an audience and point them to certain pieces.

    Esquivel's art is not only a presentation of talent, something that mentions larger philosophical questions, like the ones he stated above, but also just the right combination of interesting idea and painstaking work. One can look at his work in a critical way, or simply appreciate his idea and execution(艺术品的制作).

    If you find yourself checking your phone first thing in the morning, if you find you're text-messaging while driving, checking your phone instead of working on an important assignment—you are addicted.

    Don't worry. The new NoPhone might be just the thing you need. It looks and feels exactly like a smartphone, but it does nothing. It's just a piece of plastic that you can carry around in your hand to fool yourself.

    NoPhone is currently a prototype(手机模型) that will cost only $12 once it hits the market. Its makers are trying to raise $30,000 in order to cover the production and marketing costs.

    Dutch designer Ingmar Larsen, who helped create the NoPhone, said that he had the idea as a joke along with his friends Van Gould and Ben Langveld. To their great surprise, the idea received a lot of attention online and people from all over the world started placing requests for NoPhone of their own, so that's when the three friends decided to raise money for mass production.

David H said," I used to sleep with my phone in my hand, but my night errors would cause me to throw it across the room in an unconscious panic. With the NoPhone, I can still enjoy the comfort of holding a phone in my sleep, without waking up to a shattered screen, thanks, NoPhone."

If you're interested in NoPhone, but concerned about not being able to takeselfies anymore, don't worry. The makers do have an update at no extra charge—the mirror sticker. That way, they say, you can enjoy "real-time" selfies with your friends when they're standing right behind you.

    Rainy days don't have to get you down, a happiness expert has reported.

    Paul Dolan, Professor of Behavioral Science at the London School of Economics, said that people only feel miserable in bad weather because they think about it too much. Studies have shown that people who live in warm, sunny climates are no happier than those in chilly, wet climates, he says. So the British talking about the weather may be making us gloomier（沮丧的） than the weather itself.

    He said: “A study was done that measured the happiness levels of people in California compared to the North West. “They expected that people in California would be happier because it is more sunny, but they found that levels of happiness were exactly the same. If it is sunny every day you get used to it and the sunshine doesn't make you any happier. Most of the time the weather doesn't influence our well-being at all. But when we think about it, and think that it does, that's when we get miserable.”

    In his new book, Happiness By Design, Dolan argues that we can think ourselves happy by taking our attention away from what makes us sad.

    “Most of our anxieties come from what might be,” he argues. “If you want to be happier, pay attention to the things that make you feel good.”

    He also claimed that a problem shared was not always a problem halved(减半). He believed that humans are actually very good at being able to get over tragedy(悲剧) and loss.

    Professor Dolan also admitted for the first time that he had a stammer（口吃）, which had made his early life miserable. He added it only got better when he learned not to pay attention to his speech problem.

    “Things are never as bad as you imagine them being,” he said.

    Feelings often run high where insects are concerned, with many people even sick when seeing them, let alone touch or swallow them. And yet insects present a huge nutritional opportunity as an increasing global population seeks more sources of food and feed.

    Insects have generally high levels of animal protein and key micronutrients with lower environmental footprints than traditional alternatives, and they can be raised on leftovers. But cultural, social and economic problems remain, reports an article published today in Nutrition Bulletin.

    “Insects present a nutritional opportunity, but it is unclear how their nutritional quality is influenced by what they are fed,” says Darja Dobermann, a researcher at the University of Nottingham. “In ideal conditions, insects have a smaller environmental impact than most traditional western forms of animal protein; less known is how to raise insect production while maintaining these environmental benefits.”

    “Studies overall show that insects could make valuable economic and nutritional contributions to the food or fed systems, but there are no clear regulations in place to bring insects into such supply systems without them turning into a more expensive version of poultry（家禽）for food,” says Dobermann.

    The article highlights how insects have been a source of food for hundreds of years in more than 100 countries with over 2,000 species that can be eaten; in central Africa, up to 50% of dietary protein has come from insects, with their market value higher than many alternative sources of animal protein.

    Insects need to be large enough to make the effort of catching them worthwhile and easy to locate, preferably in predictably large quantities. They are consumed at various life stages, as raw, fried, boiled, roasted or ground food.

    Are you looking for some great beach movies? If you are, here are some beach movies that you are advised to watch.

    Blue Hawaii (1961)

    The first of Elvis Presley's Hawaiian three beach movies puts him into a setting(背景) as an army man who returns home for some surfing. Mom Angela Land sbury wants Presley to get a real job, but he's all about touring the island. Relax, Mom. Time for some wonderful parties!

    Beach Blanket Bingo (1965)

    The most famous of the “beach party” film of the 1960s stars Frankie Avalon and Annette Funicello. This movie is all about how fun it is to be a teenager, especially if you're at a party on the beach. Sunny, silly and energetic! You might find yourself laughing at the story and being happy after watching it.

    Six Days Seven Nights (1998)

    Anne Heche stars a woman unhappily engaged (订婚) to Frank Martin. On a vacation, she finds herself on a plane piloted by a sad man called Quinn Harris. They hate each other, which gets even more annoying once they two find themselves being alone on an island with no people. What better setting to fall in love?

Teen Beach Movie (2013)

    The Disney Channel remade the beach party movie in 2013 and brought us a new series of teens-dancing-on-the-beach movies. Ross Lynch is a kid suddenly thrown into a actual teen beach movie by a magic wave! Time to dress up fifties-style and sing tunes (曲调) like Surf Crazy and Cruisin for a Bruisin. In the end, the kids return to the real world. These are the movies to watch if you love happy endings.

    If you are the kind of tourist who likes to visit places with outstanding landscapes and multicultural cities, then Asia is the place to go. Take a cruise(巡游)to Asia and you will not be disappointed.

    The Finest Asian Cruise Explorations

    Tourists who want to visit several Asian countries understand that cruising there is the best alternative. You can decide to take a two-week cruise, starting from Sri Lanka to Thailand. There's also a three-week cruise that starts off in China all the way to Japan. A most popular voyage is one that starts from Hong Kong to Singapore.

    The Best Time to Travel

    When touring Asia, it's best to understand that different cruise lines have different travelling timelines. You can be caught in the rain during your tour(October to December in Malaysia and December to February in Indonesia). Most cruises take place from December to the end of March.

    Booking Cruise-ship Tours

    Given that you'll probably be taking long flights to get to South Asia and the Far East, the budget will be large, especially if you are visiting as a family. In addition, many people tour this region, so it would be best if you book early when the prices are more appealing.

    Activities

    There are so many ports in Asia and this might bring a challenge if you want to get somewhere in time. Make sure you plan your day-trips in advance and follow the cruise line tours to avoid missing the boats. Apart from visiting the cities, you could also go to Borneo, Indonesia to see the orangutans(猩猩). You can also hop across several islands from Bali, appreciate the colorful floats as well as the cherry blossoms in Japan and visit the floating fish farms in Vietnam.