It all began with a stop at a red light.

    Kevin Salwen was driving his 14-year-old daughter,Hannah,back from a sleepover in 2006.While waiting at a traffic light,they saw a black Mercedes Coupe on one side and a homeless man begging for food on the other.

    "Dad,if that man had a less nice car,that man there could have a meal," Hannah protested.The light changed and they drove on,but Hannah was too young to be reasonable.She pestered（纠缠）her parents about inequity,insisting that she wanted to do something.

    "What do you want to do?" her mom responded. "Sell our house?"

    Warning!Never suggest a grand gesture to an idealistic teenager.Hannah seized upon the idea of selling the luxurious family home and donating half the proceeds（收入）to charity,while using the other half to buy a more modest replacement home.

    Eventually,that's what the family did.The project—crazy,impetuous（鲁莽的）and absolutely inspiring—is written down in detail in a book by father and daughter scheduled to be published next month: The Power of Half.It's a book that,frankly,I'd be nervous about leaving around where my own teenage kids might find it.An impressionable child reads this,and the next thing you know your whole family is out on the street.

    At a time of enormous needs in Haiti and elsewhere,when so many Americans are trying to help Haitians by sending everything from text messages to shoes,the Salwens offer an example of a family that came together to make a difference—for themselves as much as the people they were trying to help.In a column a week ago,it described neurological（神经生物学的）evidence from brain scans that unselfishness lights up parts of the brain normally associated with more primary satisfaction.The Salwens' experience confirms the selfish pleasures of selflessness.

    Mr.Salwen and his wife,Joan,had always assumed that their kids would be better bigger house.But after they downsized,there was much less space to retreat to,so the family members spent more time around each other.A smaller house unexpectedly turned out to be a more family-friendly house.

    Some people think that as more and more people have televisions in their homes, fewer and fewer people will buy books and newspapers. Why read an article in the newspaper, when the TV news can bring you the information in a few minutes and with pictures? Why read the life story of a famous man, when a short television program can tell you all that you want to know?

    Television has not killed reading, however. Today, newspapers sell in very large numbers. And books of every kind are sold more than ever before. Books are still a cheap way to get information and enjoyment. Although some books with hard covers are expensive, many books are printed today as paperbacks (平装本), which are quite cheap. A paperback collection of short stories, for example, is always cheaper than an evening at the cinema or the theater, and you can keep a book for ever and read it many times.

    Books are a wonderful provider of knowledge and pleasure and some types of books should be in every home. Every home should have a good dictionary. A good encyclopedia, though expensive, is useful, too, because you can find information on any subject. Besides, you can have such books as history books, science textbooks, cookbooks, and collections of stories and poems. Then from time to time you can take a book of poems off your shelves and read the thoughts and feelings of your favorite poets.

    Most kinds of rose plants come from Asia. But roses are also native to other areas including northwest Africa, Europe and the United States. Some people say roses are difficult to grow. But you have a good chance of success if you start with a few suggestions from experts.

    You should plant your roses where they can get sunshine for about six hours on bright days. You can buy roses from a garden center or by mail order. You can buy potted（盆栽）roses, also known as container roses, or bare-root（裸根）plants. Each kind has its fans.

    Some gardeners say potted roses are easier to plant. They say the roots develop better. But Jeffrey Dinslage, president of Nature Hills Nursery in Omaha, Nebraska, points out that bare-root roses come without soil. So they weigh less to transport. If they arrive before you are ready to plant them, make sure the packing material is slightly wet. Keep the plants in a cool, dark place. You plant the roses while they are not active. The resting plants have no leaves but still need water.

    When growing roses, the soil should be wet. Watering should be done in the morning. That can prevent problem called black spots. But do not water too much. Jeffrey Dinslage says people often ask him about becoming discolored on rose leaves. He says the problems are usually caused by too much water. After heavy rains or too much watering, he advises pulling away mulch（覆盖物） from around the roots for a short time. This will help dry the soil. If your soil is very dry, you can add compost(堆肥), which returns nutrients（营养）to the soil.

    If you want to know more information, please click www. Planting.com.

    Did you know that badminton is also a fast-paced competitive sport? Badminton has been a Summer Olympic sport since 1992. Para-badminton will be included in the 2020 Summer Olympic Games in Tokyo. Here's what you need to know if your child is interested in badminton.

    Badminton is played on a 44-foot-long rectangular (矩形的) court that is 17 feet wide for singles and 20 feet wide for doubles. It is divided in the middle by a net placed 5 feet off the ground, like volleyball, not at ground level like tennis.

    In competition, each match is a set of three games played to 21 points. There is a one-minute break when a player or team reaches 11 points, and a two-minute break in between the first and second games and the second and third games.

    Age kids can start: About 6 years old.

    Best for kids who: Have good skills, are patient and hardworking, and can handle the pressure of one-on-one or two-on-two competition.

    Team or individual: Matches can be singles (one-on-one) or doubles (two-on-two).

    Fun fact: Badminton is the only sport that has mixed doubles event in the Olympic Games.

    Costs: Beginners are expected to pay $30 to $40 for an entry-level racket (球拍). Badminton shoes are similar in price to other athletic shoes. Join a club or team for lessons and court time. A one-hour group lesson for beginners should cost $20 to $25, with costs increasing as your child moves up the ranks. You will also pay entry fees for competitions.

    Time commitment required: Beginners will play for just an hour or two per week.

Potential for injury: Players have a very low risk of injury. Players who wear glasses should use eye protection.

    On a dark winter day in Russia in 1896, Sergei Prokofiev sat by a piano next to his mother. She was helping him compose (作曲) his first piece of music. Sergei was only five years old.

    He had overheard his parents discussing a terrible famine (饥荒) in India. The picture Sergei had of those hungry people in his mind caused him to write a story, in the form of musical notes. Sergei could not read music, so he picked out a tune on the piano keys, and his mother recorded the notes. Sergei titled it "Indian Gallop."

    Sergei's mother began giving him piano lessons for 20 minutes a day, and his ability grew quickly. She had a great love for music, too, and Sergei often lay awake in bed at night and listened to her play the piano.

    Sergei's parents found a famous music teacher for him. The teacher shouted at Sergei when he didn't practice reading and playing music. Sergei later wrote, "I wanted to compose great musical plays, and instead I was given all sorts of boring tasks." Yet he persisted with his studies and grew up to be a great composer.

    In 1936 a children's theater asked Sergei to write music that would teach children about different instruments. He was happy and wrote the piece in a week, calling it Peter and the Wolf.

    Sergei's Peter and the Wolf was enjoyed by children as well as adults. The first time Sergei played the piece on the piano, the children listening to it loved it so much that they made him play the ending three extra times. He was excited.

    Today Sergei Prokofiev is remembered not only for his contributions (贡献) to classical music, but also for his sense of fun.

    Artificial intelligence (AI) is practically everywhere today. There are so many products out there which use AI. Some are being developed, some are already in use, and some failed and are being improved, so it's very difficult to name a few of them and regard them as the best.

    Vi

    It is an AI personal trainer which is mainly concerned with fitness and coaching. It, however, requires the use of bio-sensing earphones and other fitness tracking equipment (设备)! It can play your favourite music while you work out and all you have to worry about is the exercise you're doing.

    Deep Text

    Do you ever wonder how an ad appears suddenly just when you are looking for something similar? This is because of Deep Text. It uses real-time consumer (消费者) information to produce data which in turn is used to target consumers. Thus, if you search online for flight tickets from Bangalore to Delhi, it is very likely that an ad relating to hotels in Delhi will soon follow.

    Hello Egg

    If you live alone and miss your mother because you always miss your breakfast or don't know what to eat for dinner, then Hello Egg is exactly what you are looking for. A very healthy choice of the 2-minute noodles and oats, Hello Egg provides you with a detailed weekly meal plan about the needs of your body. It is truly a modern AI-powered home cooking tool for the young.

    Wordsmith

    You can put Mr. Smith into your Microsoft Excel using their free API, and let it write up detailed analysis (分析) of the stories behind your numbers. It can produce detailed reports on thousands of pages of spreadsheets in seconds.