Best friends may be priceless but the cost of keeping the relationship alive is £23,870.

    According to a study, a BFF (best friends forever) does not come cheap with devoted friends spending £4,679 on birthday presents alone over a lifetime. And while it costs nothing to be a shoulder to cry on, big-hearted Britons go the extra mile and spend £168 on pick-me-ups(提神物品) to get their mate through a rocky patch (艰难时刻)like the breakup of a relationship.

    There's a further £242 spent on presents to show how much they mean from gifts bought on holiday to treats for no reason. And distance does not break up a close friendship as BFFs spend a whopping(巨大的) £18,000 on travel to see each other despite being miles apart because of university, jobs and marriage.

    The study by cashback site TopCashBack found on average BEFs who marry can expect £431 spent on them and a further £283 on gifts when they have children. And they can rely on their pals to help out when they move houses as they will obtain £127 worth of housewarming presents and takeaways(a kind of food).

    The survey based on a friendship lasting 40 years found more than eight in ten adults with a BFF felt their friendships were worth every penny.

    TopCashback spokesperson Natasha Smith said: “Those friendships which stand the test of time are often the most important in our lives. However, they come at a cost. From train tickets once a month to flights and a new dress for a wedding on the Italian coast, the price paid for having a best mate can soon add up. But when we asked people to compare their friendship with the financial investment(投资), only 14% thought their friendship was equal to their investment with the vast majority thinking it was worth more."

    According to a survey, only 4% of the people in the world are left-handed. Why? One theory centers on the two halves of the brain. For example, the left half and the right half, each of which functions differently. Medical science believes that the left half of the brain dominates over the right half. The foundation of this theory is the fact that nerves from the brain cross over at neck-level to the opposite side of the body, and nerves from the other side of the brain reciprocate (互换). The end re­sult is that the opposite sides of the body are controlled by the opposite sides of the brain.

    The dominant left half of the brain, which kindly supplies the right half of the body, theoretically makes it more skillful in read­ing, writing, speaking, and working, and makes most people right-handed. Lefties, however, whose right half of the brain dominates, work best with the left side of their bodies.

    Theory number two focuses on the asymmetrical nature of the body. Examples of the asymmetry, which flows from head to toe, are that the right side of our faces differs slightly from the left, that our legs differ in strength, or that our feet vary in size. One aspect of this asymmetry is that for most people the right hand is stronger than the left.

    There is no doubt that all exist in a “right-handed society”, which produces most basics, including scissors, doorknobs, locks, screwdrivers, automobiles, buttons on clothing, and musical instru­ments for the 96%. Left-handed people make up for the unfairness by being members of an elite (精英) society, which includes many of the greatest geniuses, including Michelangelo and Leonardo da Vinci.

    He was once referred to as the Picasso of poetry. Beloved by Chileans of all classes, he is one of the most widely read and respected poets in history. And this year is the 100th birthday of Pablo Neruda (1904-1973).

    Born with the name Neftali Ricardo Reyes Basolto, he was a tall, shy and lonely boy. He loved to read and started to write poetry when he was ten. The American poet Walt Whitman, whose framed picture Neruda later kept on his table, became a major influence on his work.

    However, his father did not like the idea of having a poet for a son and tried to discourage him from writing. To cover up the publication of his first poem, he took the pen name Pablo Neruda.

    In 1924 Neruda gained fame with his most widely read work “Twenty Love Poems and a Song of Despair''. Yet his rich experience as a diplomat and exile made him go beyond the theme of love. His work also reflected the political struggle of the left and development of South America. He was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature in 1971.

    Neruda loved the sea which he saw as creative, destructive and forever moving. He found inspiration in the power and freedom of the waves and the seabirds on the coast. “I need the sea because it teaches me,” he wrote. “I move in the university of the waves.” He loved how the sea forever renewed itself, a renewal echoed in his work.

It's long been thought that in order to succeed in life you need to think only of yourself and ignore the needs of others. New research,however,suggests the exact opposite is true and being nice to others actually makes you more likely to be successful. The scientists found that ‘givers' were more likely to share knowledge,and in turn gain more information themselves.

    Researchers divided participants into three groups based on a personality test: givers, takers and matchers. In a social dilemma task, participants were given a made-up donation which was equal to the amount of ￡ 240( $400). They were then asked to decide how much of their money they would give to a shared group pool. They were told that the money in the pool would be doubled and divided equally among all group members. Thus,it would be more beneficial to the group as a whole if everyone contributed their individual donations. However, it would be more beneficial for the individual if everyone else from the group contributed,while the individual kept his or her own money. The researchers used this strategic (策略的) information sharing task to examine how much and which pieces of information participants shared:the less important and already known information or the really important information only known by the individual.

    The results showed that givers are less self-centered and self-loving than takers. Givers shared not only more money with the group, but they also shared important information. Takers on the other hand kept both the money as well as different types of information.

    The findings suggest that it may not be enough to simply provide knowledge management tools in order to make the best of knowledge exchange in a group of people. It may be necessary for leaders and managers to keep in mind the personality styles of their employees. Specifically, they should be aware that takers may keep the important information for themselves.

I arrived in this beautiful Spanish island at the start of September, full of enthusiasm and eager to start work as an English teacher. I sorted all the necessary paperwork out and moved into a flat of my own within the first couple of days. Great! Or so I thought. At 4 am and at several intervals after that, I was rudely awoken by the cock that lives opposite me. Fantastic! I now have five extra alarms every morning.

In the following weeks, I also started to notice a trend. Things in my flat started to break at the rate of one object per day, like the hot water, bowls, cups, shower, doors or glass shelves. Yes, I was clumsy but things just fell apart. If it wasn't broken, it would either be dirty or missing. Using my washing basket for the first time was pretty disgusting. When I took out my clothes, they were swiftly followed by a hundred or so insects that were living in the bottom.

As for the general lack of equipment in the house, there was no oven, tin opener, sharp knives or potato peeler. It turned out making a burger wasn't the best idea. I had a small microwave and a grill. I thought the general understanding was never to put metal in a microwave but I went with it. Smoke soon started to appear. I was not quite sure if it was the burger or the grill but as soon as I opened the door, the electricity cut out. I spent the following 10 minutes in a dark, smoky room hunting for the power switch using the light from my mobile phone, which broke the week after and left me without a connection to the outer world.

Luckily, I'm now borrowing a phone and my luck has returned. No more things have broken (probably because there is nothing left to break). I've also realized that even if a flat looks pretty, it doesn't mean its contents work. I am also learning how to adapt to life with limited, broken utensils.

I've just arrived from New York City at the airport in Rome and already I'm lost, wandering left and right and searching for the right exit. I'm supposed to meet my wife Elvira, who lives in Italy now, and then drive to Guardia Sanframondi, the little town where we own a house, to meet our newborn granddaughter Lucia, now all of 11 weeks old.

But I takes a wrong turn, and then another, all in vain. I'm lost for 15 minutes, then 30, and finally about 45, unable to get my passport properly scanned and pick up my luggage. This is more than mildly inconvenient. After all, I've just flown more than 4,000 miles, a flight into my future.

But suddenly I see Elvira, who is holding baby Lucia in her arms. I'm found.

I stay in Italy for three weeks. It's impossible for me to get enough of Lucia, and so I follow a strict agenda(日程). Hold Lucia in my arms. Kiss Lucia all over her face. Wheel Lucia in her carriage in the most public places available. Make faces at her and even sillier gestures and sounds.

Today, at 70, I'm a permanent resident of Italy, with Lucia living a five-minute walk away. We visit her at her house and she visits us at ours almost every day. In most American families, adult children with grandchildren live in different towns and states far away. Italian families, on the other hand, are more likely to live near each other. Sometimes three generations here even stay together in the same home. I've happily turned my life upside-down to be a grandpa Italian-style. Lucia is just what I need right about now. If I'm lucky, I'll be just what she needs, too.