Canadian short story writer Alice Munro wonthe Nobel Prize for Literature. Eighty-two-year-old Munro is only the 13thwoman to win the 112-year-old prize．

Munro didn't publish her first collectionof short stories until she was 37 years old, but her stories have always beenwell-received. Lots of her stories share similar themes and characters, buteach story has its own twists and turns.

Even though she's won Canada's most famousliterary award, the Giller Prize, twice, winning the Nobel Prize for Literatureis the cherry on top of Munro's career. “It brings this incredible recognition，both of her and her career，and of the dedication to the short story,”said one person.

Along with the well-respected title comes1.3 million dollars. Munro said everything was “so surprising and wonderful”and that she was “dazed by all the attention and affection that has been comingmy way.”

Munro knew she was in the running—she wasnamed the second-most likely person to win this year's prize, after HarukiMurakami（村上春树）of Japan—but she never thought that she would win.

Munro's win also represents the long wayCanadian writers have come. “When I began writing there was a very smallcommunity of Canadian writers and little attention was paid by the world. NowCanadian writers are read, admired and respected around the globe,” Munro saidon Thursday.

She is technically not the first Canadianto win the Nobel Prize for Literature, but many like to think that she is．In 1976 Saul Bellow, who was born in Quebecbut moved to Chicago when he was still a child, won the prize. Even though hewas born in Canada, he is mostly considered to be an American writer.

“This is a win for us all. Canadians, byour very nature，are not very nationalistic,” said Geoffrey Taylor. “But things like thissuddenly make you want to find a flag．”

She wasn't sure whether she would keepwriting if she won the prize，saying that it would be “nice to go out with a bang. But this may change mymind.”

    How long has 3-D technology been around? Most of us might think of crowds of teenagers in a 1950's movie house watching Bwana Devil in 3-D. But 3-D technology made its first appearance on the scene in 1838 with the first stereoscope(体视镜). And the first actual 3-D movie was a 1903 film called Le Ariveed'un Train.

    Although it has such a long history, the technology has still remained based on one simple principle—to make 3-D effects you must find a way to project two slightly different pictures to each eye. Modern 3-D technology works by rapidly flickering(闪动)two versions of the movie and projecting them onto each eye. The brain does the rest of the work, combining the two pictures together into one and giving the show the appearance of depth, the third dimension.

    But does this exposure, especially long exposures, cause harm to the child's developing brain and visual system? Unfortunately, long-term studies on new flicker digital 3-D technology and children aren't yet available. We do not know if regular or daily 3-D viewing over years affects the developing visual system, although older 3-D methods basically do the same thing and are not considered harmful.

    The question of possible harm in modern 3-D use in TV is really based on two facts: the amount of time children will now be watching 3-D TV each day and the sensitivity some children show in reaction to 3-D viewing. It is difficult to make actual lab studies of longer term 3-D viewing in children because of the possible harm of the experiment. Researchers will have to wait until 3-D TV technology is already in the marketplace for a number of years, then check heavy 3-D TV watchers and compare them with non-watchers.

    With a 3-D television technology in the home, we will soon be able to answer the question of whether or not longer and more frequent periods of 3-D exposure cause more changes in the visual system. We may find that the bigger problem is the introduction of a new technology that leads to even more time spent on TV rather than playing outdoors.

For some people, music is no fun at all. About four percent of the population is what scientists call "amusic." People who are amusic are born without the ability to recognize or reproduce musical notes (音调). Amusic people often cannot tell the difference between two songs. Amusics can only hear the difference between two notes if they are very far apart on the musical scale.

As a result, songs sound like noise to an amusic. Many amusics compare the sound of music to pieces of metal hitting each other. Life can be hard for amusics. Their inability to enjoy music sets them apart from others. It can be difficult for other people to identify with their condition. In fact, most people cannot begin to grasp what it feels like to be amusic. Just going to a restaurant or a shopping mall can be uncomfortable or even painful. That is why many amusics intentionally stay away from places where there is music. However, this can result in withdrawal and social isolation. "I used to hate parties," says Margaret, a seventy-year-old woman who only recently discovered that she was amusic. By studying people like Margaret, scientists are finally learning how to identify this unusual condition.

    Scientists say that the brains of amusics are different from the brains of people who can appreciate music. The difference is complex, and it doesn't involve defective hearing. Amusics can understand other nonmusical sounds well. They also have no problems understanding ordinary speech. Scientists compare amusics to people who just can't see certain colors.

Many amusics are happy when their condition is finally diagnosed (诊断). For years, Margaret felt embarrassed about her problem with music. Now she knows that she is not alone. There is a name for her condition. That makes it easier for her to explain. "When people invite me to a concert, I just say, ‘No thanks, I'm amusic,'" says Margaret. "I just wish I had learned to say that when I was seventeen and not seventy."

    Millions of Americans sit behind a computer screen, chained to their desk all day because the vast majority of stable, high-paying professions(职业) are "office jobs". However, having a successful career does not require you to sit behind a desk and plug away at a computer all day.

    In fact, there are a large number of non-desk jobs in a variety of industries that are growing and offering workers a direct path to the middle class, according to a new analysis of labor market information from CareerBuilder. While most of the highest-paying non-desk jobs are medical professions that require a doctoral or professional degree, there are 170 non-desk professions that pay $15 per hour or more, do not require a bachelor's degree(学士学位) for a typical entry-level position, and have seen at least 6 percent job growth over the last four years.

    "The US workforce has gradually changed to office-based work because of the rise of the professional service economy and productivity gains associated with information technology," Rosemary Haefner, Vice President of Human Resources Officer at CareerBuilder, said in a statement. "But some of the healthiest areas of job growth year after year are in middle-skill professions that don't require workers to sit in front of computer monitors and phones for 40 hours a weel."

    Here are the top-paying jobs that don't require you to work at a desk in various kinds — none of which require a four-year college degree — and their hourly salary(工资) and growth rate since 2010: professional assistants(助理) : $26.57, 14 percent; elevator repairers: $37.81, 6 percent; mechanical engineering technicians: $25.19, 10 percent; and electromechanical(电动机械的) technicians: $24.68, 8 percent.

    While they tend to pay less than traditional office jobs, non-desk professions provide a variety of benefits. Haefner points to a 2014 CareerBuilder survey that discovered workers who don't work at a desk all day are less likely to complain about their work environment and less likely to report being overweight.

    Australia was first used as an island prison by Britain to solve their problem of having a fast growing prison population. These early settlers were those who were sent from all over Great Britain, including Ireland, Wales, and Scotland. Later events, such as the gold rush, caused several waves of immigration (移居) from Europe, Asia and other parts of the world. It is commonly thought that Australians are offspring (后代) of those criminals (罪犯)! In fact, only a part of Australians are those criminals' offspring. Also, in those days, people could be put into prison or sent to Australia for small crimes, like stealing a loaf of bread. Today Australia is home to the largest Greek and Italian communities in the world, outside Greece and Italy. This has helped the Australian accent develop.

    Australian English was created by the first generation of children born in the new area. Since they talked with people who have different accents, they began to speak a distinct dialect of English that was to become the language of the nation. These differences were first noted by late arrivals in the early 1800s, and the language sounds like Cockney English, spoken by the working­class in London.

    Soon, words from native languages were to become part of the Australian English. Here are some words you may consider them to be Standard English. In fact, they are from native Australian languages!

    The names of many places and animals, including Canberra (the Australian capital, meaning "meeting place" in a local language).

    Hard yakka — meaning "hard work", coming from the language of the Brisbane area.

    Cooee — a call used traditionally by native Australians to attract attention, because the sound can travel long distances.

    Bung — meaning "dead", but also used to mean broken or useless, for example, "He has a bung eye".

    For many families, a night at the ballpark is a treat. But it can be a terrible experience for those with autistic(自闭症的)children, who are sensitive to light and noise and usually become upset and scared.

    For these families, fear of how their child will react to new situations­and how others will react to them-keeps them from gaining everyday experiences others get to have.

    Dr. Wendy Ross was heartbroken to see that. The pediatrician(儿科医生)in Philadelphia also knew that separation from the community didn't serve her patients well in the long run.

    "If kids are not in the community, building their skills from very young ages, then there's no reason to expect them to be independent one day," Ross said. "It's a social disability. It needs to be addressed in a social setting."

    So in 2007, Ross set out to do just that. Today, her nonprofit, Autism Inclusion Resources, helps families affected by autism deal with challenging social situations, such as sporting events, airport travel and museum visits.

    Many Major League Baseball teams hold annual 44autism awareness nights", when they take temporary measures such as lowering the volume (音量)on the public address system. But Ross wanted to do more. "You can't turn down the volume of the world," Ross said. "It's nice to do it for one night, but our goal is for families to be able to go to a game on any night."

    To that end, Ross partnered with the Philadelphia Phillies to develop a creative program.

    She armed all the Phillies players and game-day staff with knowledge about autism and how to interact with individuals who have the disorder. Each family is also provided a clinician at the game who gives additional support if problems arise. She also helps prepare the families for the event.

    Ross has also found her airport travel program to be successful for families. Using the same principles, she trains airline and security staff at major airports and then guides families through the travel experience, including checking in, going through security and boarding a plane.

    Ross hopes that the tools she gives families can help them explore other settings on their own. "We really see it as a stepping stone to a brighter future," she said.