First it was worry about second-hand smoke, now there's major concern over third-hand smoke which gets into hair, clothes, furniture or a car rather than directly from a cigarette or someone breathing it out.

    To be honest, I've always been worried about the health dangers of this even though I didn't know it had a name. My worry made me reluctant to let smokers hold my babies even though they didn't smoke in my house.

    Tests for its effects have been only carried out on mice, but I don't think they can be ignored. Researchers at California University last month suggested third-hand smoke (THS) could cause type 2 diabetes, liver and lung damage.

    They analyzed how people are affected by taking in smoke from another person's clothing, hair, home, or car. They say they can see an impact on the brain and liver. Lead author Manuela Martins-Green said: “Our goal was to decide the smallest amount of time required to cause physiological changes in mice when they are exposed(暴露) to THS.” This was done using an exposure system that is the same as human exposure.

    “We found THS exposure as early as one month caused liver damage. Exposure for two months lead to further molecular(分子的) damage, and at four to six months caused even more such damage. We also found the mice showed insulin resistance（抗胰岛素） after long-term exposure.”

    “THS is a hidden danger, a silent killer. Pollutants can be absorbed through the skin and through breathing.”

    “Although our research was not done on humans, people should be aware that hotel rooms, cars and homes that were used by smokers are very likely to be polluted with THS.” Martins-Green believes most people don't know they're being exposed to THS, or don't believe in the damage it can do.

    THS toxins(毒素) remain on surfaces for many years, and resist even strong cleaning agents.

    A great woman once said, “Women must try to do things as men have tried. When they fail, their failure must be a challenge to others. “These are the words of US pilot Amelia Earhart（1897- 1937）, a pioneer in aviation（航空领域）, who was the first woman to fly across the Atlantic Ocean

    Her story ended in mystery when she disappeared without a trace（踪迹）during a flight over the Pacific Ocean. Theories about what happened to Earhart were proposed, but nothing was ever confirmed—until now. A study published in March conducted by Richard Jantz from the University of Tennessee, US, determined that bones found in 1940 on a remote Pacific island belonged to Earhart. Following the discovery, the world's memories of the legendary female pilot were brought back to life.

    Earhart was born in 1897. When she was young, she was very interested in stories about women who were successful in male-dominated（男性为主的）professions, such as engineering and law. But in 1920, Earhart's life changed after her first experience of being a plane passenger. As soon as the plane left the ground, Earhart knew that she loved flying, so she found herself a teacher and started to learn how to fly for herself. To pay for the lessons and buy a plane of her own, she took all sorts of jobs.

    In 1932, Earhart flew solo（独自地）across the Atlantic, becoming the first woman ever to do so. She also designed a flying suit for women and went on to design other clothes for women who led active lives. When she was nearly 40, Earhart was ready for a final challenge—to be the first woman to fly around the world. Her first attempt was unsuccessful but she tried again in 1937 with her navigator（领航员）Fred Noonan. But one month later, they disappeared in bad weather in mid-flight.

    Even though it's still not clear how she ended up on the island, we're one step closer to finding the answer. And no matter what, Earhart will be forever remembered as a brave pioneer, both as a pilot and as a woman.

    The Oklalhoma teen's eyes were covered by two blindfolds（眼罩）. She didn't know she would meet her father, James, after 12-year separation.

    “I had actually discussed with her the night before at a restaurant and talked over the details of where we would go and how we would pull them of,” said Amanda, Rory Beth's mother.

    A video shows Amanda led her blindfolded daughter out of their car and guided her across the parking lot of Broken Arrow Lanes in Broken Arrow.

    Little did she know, her father was on the sidewalk holding a birthday cake that read, “Happy Birthday Rory Beth, Love Dad.” When the teen slowly pulled down her blindfolds, she was extremely surprised. Both the father and daughter stood silently looking at each other until James finally walked over and hugged her. James only broke their embrace to look at his daughter and hold her face. “There were definitely lots of tears from James, myself, and boys, and even a few bystanders,” said Amanda.

    James was a truck driver who spent a lot of time on the road, so Amanda ended the marriage with him when Rory Beth was a baby. “It was hard to figure out how to make it work,” Amanda said. Amanda felt Rory Beth was now old enough to understand and to ask any questions she may have, so the reunion happened.

    The birthday surprise was on June 4, and the father and daughter had seen each other again since, even celebrating Father's Day together. Amanda said her daughter and James were both delighted to be together.

    “She's already calling him 'daddy' and tells him that she loves him.” Amanda said.

    In the years of my growing up, Dad was hard on me. He made sure I made my bed and did my homework. As a school girl and young adult, I feared him and felt bitter about him. He seemed unhappy with me unless I got straight A's and unhappy with my boyfriends if their fathers were not as "successful" as he was. Whenever I went out with him on weekends, I used to struggle to think up things to say, feeling on guard.

    He would call in advance to make sure there was no alcohol(酒精) at the party. I got so angry with him for laying down the law. I would scream, "I hate you!" Dad would yell back, "Good! I don't care!" Deep down I knew he did.

    One time at a party, I drank too much alcohol and got so sick. I said, "Call my dad." Next thing, Dad was carrying me to the car. I woke up the next morning, thinking I would definitely be criticized(批评). As expected, I got a roasting, but I now understand why I need discipline(纪律).

    Dad was 29 when he got his big roles in films. I had an early start at the age of nine with a role in a 1990s TV series, but it wasn't until I finished film studies that I pursued my career as an actress. Like those early days for Dad, I faced lots of rejections. Working in such a competitive industry, I've sometimes thought, "I can't do this any more."

    Once, after a trip to Hollywood, I returned to Australia so depressed and spent months in my bedroom painting, listening to Eckhart Tolle's music and trying to find myself again. Dad sat me down and said, "Alice, I know it's hard, but it's all about persistence(坚持不懈)."

    Now I get to work with Dad a lot, which I love. We are both enthusiastic about acting, which comes from us being so interested in people. If it weren't for Dad, I wouldn't be where I am today. He's my biggest fan, and when you have that in your life you can go a long way.

    In the future those who are taking care of old people may get help from the house itself.

    Over the last few years, new technology, such as the Internet, Wi-Fi and flat TV screens, has changed our homes and the way that we live. Now, another technology revolution is happening. A new project at the University of Hertfordshire wants to create a home that monitors people living in it who are elderly.

    The researchers have developed a wristband device（装置）which helps us to watch the elderly person who is wearing it. The device collects information to see if the person has fallen or has wandered away from where he or she should be.

    The assisted-living project is part of the university's wider Interhome project, which is the development of a smart house. The house remembers the habits of the person who lives there and it uses very low amounts of energy. The Interhome team hope that offering this service will help take care of the elderly. They say, "It's very important that these technologies are there to help and support and not replace any of the existing services."

    The Interhome is not just a research method. It's also a way for students from different scientific backgrounds to learn and develop technology. The university uses the latest technology to help students get experience by developing new hardware and software themselves. The team includes design, engineering and computer science students working together.

    "We are working on a smart-home project in Watford with some companies at the moment," says the project leader. "We are looking at how a smart home can provide even more services." This could help millions of old people around the world have a better and safer life in the future.

If you are a psychology enthusiast, you have probably heard of the famous marshmallow (棉花糖) test. In this task, kids are given a single treat, such as a marshmallow, and are told that they can eat that marshmallow now, or they can wait a little while, and have two marshmallows instead.

Some kids eat the marshmallow immediately, but most try their best to wait for the experimenter to come back with two marshmallows.

Wait times in the marshmallow test came to be seen as indicators of self-control. But what if the behavior in the marshmallow test has more to do with cultural norms (准则) than self-control? A 2022 study by Yanaoka tested the idea that children may decide how long to wait for rewards based on what they are accustomed to waiting for in their culture. In the United States (with some exceptions), there is no widespread custom of waiting until everyone is served to eat your food. However, in Japan, there is a mealtime custom of waiting until everyone has been served before anyone digs in.

Because of this difference in norms, the researchers assumed that Japanese children would wait longer in the marshmallow test than the American children. This is exactly what they found. The researchers did a clever follow-up experiment. They found one field where children in the U.S. are accustomed to waiting longer than Japanese children are: Opening presents. In the U.S., gifts are usually given on special occasions, such as birthdays and Christmas. On these occasions, children usually have to wait before they can open their presents. In Japan, however, gift-giving happens more often, and children usually open presents immediately.

Given these cultural differences, Yanaoka expected that if they ran the marshmallow test with Japanese and American kids, but they replaced marshmallows with packaged gifts, then American kids would wait longer to open them. Once again, their assumption was correct. When the potential rewards were packaged gifts instead of food, American children waited 15 minutes on average, and Japanese children waited about four minutes on average.

This is a powerful result because it demonstrates the importance of culture and habit in shaping behavior. If a child waits only four minutes before giving up on two marshmallows but then waits almost four times longer to open a gift, can we really say that that child lacks self-control? I don't think so.