One early morning, I went into the living room to find my mother reading a thick book called Best Loved Poems to Read Again and Again. My interest was aroused only by the fact that the word ＂Poems＂ appeared in big, hot pink letters.

    ＂Is it good?＂ I asked her.

    ＂Yeah,＂ she answered. ＂There's one I really like and you'll like it, too.＂ I leaned forward.

    ＂‘Patty Poem,'＂ she read the title. Who is Patty? I wondered. The poem began:

    She never puts her toys away,

    Just leaves them scattered^①where they lay,…           ^①散乱的

The poem was just three short sections. The final one came quickly:

    When she grows and gathers poise^②,         ^②稳重

    I'll miss her harum-scarum^③ noise,                   ^③莽撞的

    And look in vain^④ for scattered toys.                  ^④徒劳地

And I'll be sad.

    A terrible sorrow washed over me. Whoever Patty was, she was a mean girl. Then, the shock.

    ＂It's you, honey,＂ My mother said sadly.

    To my mother, the poem revealed a parent's affection when her child grows up and leaves. To me, the ＂she＂in the poem was horror. It was my mama who would be sad. It was so terrible I burst out crying.

    ＂What's wrong?＂my mother asked.

    ＂Oh Mama,＂I cried.＂I don't want to grow up ever!＂

    She smiled.＂Honey, it's okay. You're not growing up anytime soon. And when you do, I'll still love you, okay?＂

    ＂Okay,＂I was still weeping. My panic has gone. But I could not help thinking about that silly poem. After what seemed like a safe amount of time, I read the poem again and was confused. It all fit so well together, like a puzzle. The language was simple, so simple I could plainly understand its meaning, yet it was still beautiful. I was now fascinated by the idea of poetry, words that had the power to make or break a person's world.

    I have since fallen in love with other poems, but ＂Patty Poem＂ remains my poem. After all, ＂Patty Poem＂ gave me my love for poetry not because it was the poem that lifted my spirits, but because it was the one that hurt me the most.

    Rainforests, it turns out, are not created equal. Take the Amazon rainforest, an area that covers about 7 million square kilometers. But within that huge expanse are all kinds of ecological zones, and some of these zones, says Greg Asner, are a lot more crowded than others.

    “Some forests have many species of trees,” he said, “others have few. Many forests are unique from others in terms of their overall species composition…” And all of these different small areas of forest exist within the giant space that is the Amazon Rainforest.

    So Asner, using the signature technique called airborne laser-guided imaging spectroscopy, began to map these different zones from the air. “By mapping the traits of tropical forests from above,” he explains, “we are, for the first time, able to understand how forest composition varies geographically.”

    The results show up in multicolored maps, with each color representing different kinds of species, different kinds of trees, the different kinds of chemical they are producing and using, and even the amount of biodiversity, the animal and plant species that live within each zone.

    Armed with this information, Asner says decision-makers now have “a first-time way to decide whether any given forest geography is protected well enough or not. If not, then new protections can be put in place to save a given forest from destruction.”

    Asner says the information is a great way for decision-makers to develop a “cost-benefit ratio type analysis.”  Conservation efforts can be expensive, so armed with this information, government leaders can ensure they are making the most of their conservation dollars by focusing on areas that are the most biologically diverse or unique.

    The next step, Asner says, is to take his project global, and to put his eyes even higher in the sky, on orbital satellites. “The technique we developed and applied to map Peru is ready to go global.” Asner said. “We want to put the required instrumentation on an Earth-orbiting satellite, to map the planet every month, which will give the best possible view of how the world's biodiversity is changing, and where to put much needed protections.

                                                                                   Journey to Asia in 2018

    Follow the Silk Route

    Though they were ruled by Russia for more than 100 years, Uzbekistan and Turkmenistan have remained far more connected to their earlier histories. This 11-day journey, with guidance from Times-selected experts, will take you deep into the heart of these Silk Road nations.

    Journey 11 days

    Time Apr. 15, May 20 and Sept. 23, 2018

    Travelers 20

    Costs $ 6,495

    Saudi Arabia and the Emirates: The Past and Future of Oil

    Oil transformed the Arabian Peninsula, bringing wealth to the traditional area as well as problems with the Western nations that needed it. Learn more on this journey accompanied by New York Times - selected experts. Explore the conservatism（保守主义）that existed in Saudi Arabia, and then see the modern architectural city Abu Dhabi.

    Journey 10 days

    Time Oct. 23 and Nov. 6, 2018

    Travelers 24

    Costs $11.695

    Seventy Years of the State of Israel

    In 2018, Israel will observe its 70th anniversary as a nation. But its history goes back more than 5,000 years, and even now, its future promises many difficulties. On this nine-day journey, travel with experts from the New York Times, a leader in its even-handed coverage of Israel, Palestinians and the Middle East. Enjoy extraordinary opportunities to hear from opinion makers, scholars, grassroots activists and media experts.

    Journey 9 days

    Time Mar. 18 and Oct. 7, 2018

    Travelers 25

    Costs $6,995

    Kashmir: The Religious Melting Pot of India

    One of the most populous nations on earth. India also has some of the most varied religions on earth. On this 13-day journey: explore this nation's colorful religious history, from Delhi to Kashmir, with expert guidance and unparalleled access to remote areas.

    Journey 13 days

    Time Mar. 24, Apr. 14 and Oct. 6, 2018

    Travelers 20

    Costs $7,895

    During my stay in Mumbai, I often went to Pune. Though the two cities are only about 145 km away from each other, traveling that distance is a headache. But work required me to do it and I would have to travel at least twice a week at some point.

    This time I was traveling around October. We started from Pune at around 5 p.m. Like all the drivers, this taxi driver also struck up a general conversation about me and my city. He started by saying that kids are one's greatest happiness. As a bachelor(光棍汉), I got a little angry when he started all about kids and family. Then he said something that really attracted me. He said he was a musician. I asked him which instruments he played, he replied,"I have an electronic system". Thinking that taxi drivers tend to be unable to buy an electronic system, I doubtfully listened to him continuing with his story.

    His name was Naveen. He was basically a musician who was expert in playing guitar and the keyboards. Naveen had left his family after a quarrel with his father over taking music as a career. Naveen had his instruments but didn't know how to earn money. The only other thing he could do was to drive. So he joined Mumbai-to-Pune taxi services. That served him as the regular income in weekdays and in the weekends he'd perform in Pune, Nasik or Mumbai. By now, he'd become a slightly famous musician in Maharashtra. But he had a condition wherever he played. He asked that the place couldn't be ticketed. They can charge for food or drinks if it's a pub or a restaurant but no tickets.

    I heard Naveen's songs. He was amazing. He had a trick which made me call him a genius(天才). Among all the faceless drivers, Naveen stood out. He inspired me to leave my job and start a theatre career in Delhi.

    As Simon Kindleysides, 34, took his first step in the London Marathon in April, he felt as if magic was in the air.

    "As we were walking toward the first mile, we actually started joining all the runners," he said. "Everyone was on the streets, cheering, and that was a magical moment." As time went on, the crowds and other racers spread around. Kindleysides and his team of eight supporters continued walking.

    Kindleysides, who is paralyzed(瘫痪的)from the waist down and typically uses a wheelchair, was equipped with an exoskeleton(体外骨骼)to help him walk. His supporters walked with him to change the batteries in his exoskeleton so he could keep moving.

    In 2013, Kindleysides was diagnosed with a brain tumor (肿瘤) that was growing in a way that pressed on certain nerves, leading to him losing feeling in his legs. He was told he would never walk again. Before his paralysis, the London­based singer and dancer had "always wanted to run a marathon," he said, but he never made the plan to do so­­until this year.

    During the London Marathon, the last two miles were the hardest. "At that point, I was exhausted. It was freezing cold, and I was hurting emotionally," Kindleysides said. But he kept going. "I didn't want to let people down. I had a team of eight, and I was raising money for The Brain Tumour Charity," he said. "I didn't want to let them down, myself down, and I thought if I would get this far, I would have to continue."So he continued and made history as the first paralyzed man to complete the London Marathon on foot.

    Then, recovering at home, he shared his accomplishment with his three children. "They used to say I'm the only dad in their whole school who's in a wheelchair, and now they say I'm their dad, the only one who has walked a marathon," he said.

    Kindleysides is training to complete three more marathons next year, including the London Marathon again.

    Nobel prize-winners, legendary (传奇的) authors, and famous scientists — you might think all these people were born to be creative. However, that's not always the case.

    While well-known figures like Pablo Picasso and Albert Einstein did their most significant (重要的) work in their youth, famous American poet Robert Frost and English-born natural scientist Charles Darwin were known as "late bloomers" – people whose talents were not noticeable until later in life.

    This idea of "peaking" at different times inspired new research from the United States. "Many people believe that creativity is exclusively (独有地) associated (有联系的) with youth, but it really depends on what kind of creativity you're talking about," said Bruce Weinburg, a professor of economics at the University of Chicago and co-author of the study.

    According to the study, published earlier this month in the journal De Economist, there are two types of people: conceptual (概念的) and experimental thinkers.

    To reach this conclusion, researchers took the 31 previous winners of the Nobel Prize in economics and arranged them according to when they did their most significant work, to identify (识别) their creative peaks.

    Some peaked from ages 25-29. Classified as conceptual thinkers, these people think outside of the box, coming up with new ideas before they become used to the conventional way of doing things.

    The second creative peak came with economists in their 50s. These are experimental thinkers who have been in their field for a long time. This allows them to learn from errors and experiment with different processes, before eventually finding new solutions.

    "Whether you hit your creative peak early or late in your career depends on whether you have a conceptual or experimental approach," said Weinburg. He added that their study isn't limited to economics, saying it can apply to other creative disciplines (知识领域). So if you're struggling to come up with new ideas, don't panic. Your creative peak may be yet to arrive.