Terrible disasters in the last 50 or 100 years have become increasingly common. Over the last 30 years, the number of weather-related disasters has increased quickly, and the disasters have also affected more people and caused more economic loss. However, much of this could be avoided through disaster risk reduction(DRR降低灾难风险).

    A meeting, held in Sendai, Japan last month, opened one day after Cyclone Pam（飓风Pam）hit Vanuatu, which struck the islands with winds of up to 340km/h and destroyed the island nation. The speech by the President of Vanuatu was given shortly after that. He begged the international community for support and stronger commitment (承诺)to helping them manage climate and disaster risks. In the face of disasters, it is always the developing countries that suffer most. Damage in these countries is often worse and unluckily, there is limited money and technique to prevent these disasters.

    In fact, we have seen Asian countries-especially those that have suffered a lot in disasters can't pay the price. Great loss Asia has suffered comes to a total of almost $ 53 billon yearly over the past 20 years.

    At the same time, studies have shown once again that proper prevention saves lives and damage. With this in mind, people at the Sendai meeting were able to come up with new agreements that effective ways of disaster risk reduction will be carried out in the coming years for those who easily get damaged in disasters.

    There is always something that happens in the world that everyone fears will happen to their town, city or country: natural disasters. The scariest part of it is that no one will ever see it coming. Though technology helps us prepare, but it never actually tells the people when it's going to hit. It is always estimated but the result is never 100% accurate.

    However, that is not the point of this article. Two different natural disasters in two different parts of the world have happened in the past few weeks. One was a major flood that has hit Louisiana in the United States. The other was an earthquake that hit Amatrice, Italy. However, there is a major difference in the news coverage of the two tragedies.

    As for the flooding in Louisiana, it is reported that this disaster is the worst to hit the United States since Super-storm Sandy and it'll cost at least $30 million. In only the first couple of weeks, 13 people had died. However, like me, many people did not hear about this tragic event. I did not learn about it until about three weeks after it happened.

    In Italy, however, it covered all media instantly. The earthquake in Italy happened on Tuesday morning. That same day, I was on Twitter and that was all that was over the news feed. Every other post was about the earthquake. Some would have the opinion that Amatrice, Italy was one of the most beautiful towns in that country. I got in deep sorrow because there were more people killed in this quake than the flooding. So far, they have a total of 73 dead and over one hundred missing.

    I understand that technically the earthquake in Italy was worse than the floods in Louisiana. However, I believe that if a natural disaster happens, they all should be equally covered and taken equally seriously. We are one world united and should be there for all of the people who are in need of help. We may not be able to accurately predict disasters but, we can surely lend a hand out for the needy.

    Some parts of the garden are for the rest of the world to admire. Others are for you to disappear to when you don't want to be found. Of course, that's easy enough to arrange when you have lots of land with space for the kids to run round and cosy "garden rooms" for the adults to enjoy. But when your garden is on the small side, you might think it's a tall order. Well, you're wrong.

    To create a secret garden, people tend to take the routine: surrounding a small garden with high fences and then placing a lawn(草坪) in the middle and borders round the edge. Far from making the most of the area, that just makes it look a lot smaller and more boring. Dividing it up makes much more use of your space and means you can have your practical family area plus a secret garden.

    When you're searching for the perfect secret site within your existing set-up, consider your present favourite spot. A secret garden needs to be special—a complete contrast to the more practical family parts of the garden. Perhaps you take a folding chair down to a quiet corner that gets evening sun; maybe you sit and watch the pond or simply slip out to the patio(露台)with a glass of wine.

    It's quite easy to change an existing favourite feature into a secret place. You could top the patio with a pergola(棚架) pole and plant a grapevine for shade, or position a bench overlooking the pond and plant bamboos to screen it from the rest of the garden.

    The areas you create needn't all to be the same size—or even the same style—but if you're planning a major redesign, take your time and work it out on paper before committing time and money. Then when it's done, you'll really be able to relax and enjoy it.

    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 feed sys tems, 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 100countries 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.

    A new study from brain researchers helps explain how the human brain evolved or changed over time, to permit people to speak and write.

    Michael Ullman, the lead researcher, a professor at Georgetown University Medical School in Washington, D.C, has been studying language learning for more than 20 years.

    Ullman says his research shows that the human brain does not have a special area or system for making language. Over time we have simply reused or co-opted (指派) parts of our brain for language. And those parts, he says, are ancient-older even than humans themselves.

    "This study examines the theoretical framework (准则) that language is learned, stored and' processed in two ancient learning and memory systems in the brain."

    Ullman, Hamrick and the rest of the team looked at data from 16 other studies on language. They found that people learn language using two memory systems: declarative and procedural. Memorizing vocabulary, for example, is a declarative memory process. But learning grammar is, mostly, a procedural memory process.

    "Declarative memory, in humans at least, is what we think of as learning memory', such as, 'Oh, remember what you said last night' or things like that. And procedural motor memory is what we often call motor memory' such as how you learn to ride a bicycle." Or, Ullman adds, "These procedural memory skills become so deeply leaned that we are no longer aware that we are doing them."

    However, Ullman explains that the two long-term memory systems can share tasks. And, he adds, the adult brain uses the systems to learn language a bit differently than a child's brain.

    "Adult language learners of a second language may use their declarative memory for using grammar patterns. They think about it purposefully. For a child, the grammar may come more naturally. They don't have to think about the grammar rules before speaking."

    In addition to language learners, Ullman's study could help people who have a brain injury that affects speaking and writing. This knowledge can also help those who have learning disabilities such as dyslexia (阅读障碍). People with dyslexia have difficulty recognizing words and symbols accurately.

Imagine reading a story titled "Pursuing Success." That would be an inspiring story, wouldn't it? Maybe—but maybe not. It might well be the story of someone whose never-ending chase for more and more success leaves them unsatisfied and incapable of happiness.

Though it isn't a conventional medical addiction, for many people success has addictive properties. Obviously, success goes with praise. To a certain extent, praise stimulates the neurotransmitter dopamine (神经递质多巴胺), which contributes to all addictive behaviors.

The desire for success may be born to human nature, but specialness doesn't come cheap. Success is tough work, and it requires bearing the cost of losing. In the 1980s, the physician Robert Goldman famously found that more than half of ambitious athletes would be willing to take a drug that would kill them in five years in exchange for winning every competition they entered.

Unfortunately, success is endless. The goal can't be satisfied; most people never feel "successful" enough. The high only lasts a day or two, and then it's on to the next goal. Psychologists call this the hedonic treadmill (快乐跑步机现象), in which satisfaction wears off almost immediately and we must run on to the next reward to avoid the feeling of falling behind.

People should get off the treadmill. But quitting isn't easy for addicts. For people hooked on substances, withdrawal can be a painful experience, both physically and psychologically, research finds that depression and anxiety are common among outstanding athletes after their careers end. Olympic athletes, in particular, suffer from the" post-Olympic blues."

Just like wine, success in and of itself is not a bad thing. Both can bring fun and sweetness to life. But both become bossy when they are a substitute for — instead of a complement (补充物)to — the relationships and love that should be at the center of our lives.