In today's world of smart phones and notebook computers, most people have at least one time-telling thing with them. Since these digital products are so common, is time running out for the 500-year-old watch? According to some consumers, the answer is yes. New Jersey teenager Charlie Wollman says a watch is “an extra piece of equipment with no necessary function.” Many young adults think so and use their smart phones to tell time. It is said that fewer young people wear watches today than ten years ago. As a result, some people say that the watch industry is at a crossroads.

    However, watchmakers optimistically say that watches regain popularity when consumers reach their 20s and 30s. By then, they are willing to spend money on a quality watch that doesn't just keep good time. Fifty years ago, watchmakers took pride in their products' accuracy. But in recent years, the watch industry has changed itself into an accessory(附属的) business. And today, the image a watch communicates has become more important than the time it tells.

    “Complications” — features that go beyond simple timekeeping — are an important part of a watch's image. Today's watches offer lots of features that meet almost any personality. These features include compasses, USB drivers, and even other functions .

    Creativity also plays a key role in designing today's watches. For example, Japanese watchmaker Tokyoflash makes watches that don't even look like watches. The company's popular Shinshoku model uses different color lights to tell time. It looks more like a fashionable bracelet(手镯) than a watch.

    Whether a watch communicates fashion sense, or creative talent of a love sports, consumers want their watches to stand out. Nowadays, everyone has the same kind of gadget(配件) in their bags, so people want to make a statement with what' s on their wrists. Will this interest in wrist fashion last? Only time will tell!

    One night, the first floor of the house suddenly caught fire. The fire was big, and soon became a sea of fire. On the second floor lived a little girl and her grandmother; the little girl's parents had died, and she lived together with her grandma. In order to rescue the little girl, the grandmother was burned to death, leaving the little girl crying for help loudly.

    How could people enter the house? At the very moment, a man carrying a ladder rushed to the flames and got into the window. When he appeared again in the eyes of the people, the little girl was in his arms. He gave the child to the crowd, and then disappeared into the night.

    This little girl had no family. Two months later a meeting was held to find a person to adopt (收养) the girl. A teacher was willing to adopt this child, and said she could give her the best education; a farmer wanted to adopt this child, saying that village life would let the child grow up healthily and happily; a rich man said, “I can give the child everything that others can do.”

    A lot of people who wanted to adopt this child said about many benefits of their adopting the child. But the little girl's face had no expression. At this time, a man, through the crowd, walked straight in front of the little girl, and opened his arms for the little girl. People were puzzled, and they found that the man had terrible scars on his arms. The little girl let out a cry, “This is the man who saved me!” She suddenly jumped up, and buried her face in his arms and sobbed. Naturally the man adopted the girl.

    An unconventional new initiative(首创)in Canada will soon allow doctors to prescribe art to their patients—by giving them free access to a local museum. Wandering through the Montreal Museum of Fine Arts(MMFA), these patients and their loved ones will be able to feast their eyes on the peaceful collections of art.

    The initiative is the first of its kind in the world. And while you certainly can't replace a conventional treatment with a couple of paintings, the idea is for such “prescriptions” to assist a person's current treatment plan. Under the new program, members of the Francophone Association of Doctors in Canada(MFDC)will be able to hand out up to 50 prescriptions for their patients.

    These prescriptions will be available for those with a wide range of mental and physical illnesses, and each of them will allow two adults and two children to visit the museum for free.

    “By offering free admission to a safe, welcoming place, a relaxing experience, a moment of relief, and an opportunity to strengthen ties with loved ones, MMFA—MFDC Museum Prescriptions contribute to the patient's well-being and recovery, ”explains a news conference from the MMFA.

    It may look a lot like a marketing effort for the museum but there's also increasing evidence that the display of visual art, especially if it's showing nature, can have positive effects on health outcomes.

    In some ways, the benefits of looking at art appear a little similar to physical activity. A systematic review of clinical art therapy(疗法) found that visual art has significant and positive effects on depression, anxiety, mood, and self-esteem. Findings like these are slowly gaining attraction in the medical community, making artwork a higher priority(优先)in hospitals around the world.

    In the US, nearly half of all health care institutions have reported including art in health care programming, such as art therapy and the placement of visual art in hospitals. With spaces dedicated(专用的)to art therapy and also a medical consultation room, the MMFA already provides services for people with mental health issues, eating disorders, and Alzheimer's disease, just to name a few.

BKLYN House Hotel

    This hotel features works by Brooklyn artists. The 116 rooms are good value and Manhattan is only 20 minutes away by taxi or subway. The immediate surroundings feel urban — the hotel is by a high-rise public housing project while the nearest commercial street is under elevated (高的) subway tracks — but Bushwick's best bars and cafes / restaurants are nearby.

    Doubles from $99, room only. Tel: 718 388 4433

Archer Hotel

    Visitors eager to stay in the heart of Manhattan should try one of the bargain-priced rooms at this hotel. Rates differ from great value to expensive; some start from as low as $179 a night (if prepaying in full). Rooms are small but tasteful, with nice touches such as exposed brick. Some have close-up views of the Empire State Building.

    Doubles from $199, room only. Tel: 212 719 4100

CitizenM New York Times Square

    This is the first US location for a Netherlands-based concept hotel chain — CitizenM. The hotel features self check-in at its 230 little but comfortable rooms via touch screen "MoodPads". There's a rooftop bar, a 24-hour grab-and-go cafeteria and an area with public iMac workspaces. Although New Yorkers avoid nearby Times Square, all the lights, cameras and action can make it a fun tourist experience.

    Doubles from $170, room only. Tel: 212 319 7000

Imagine having the {#blank#}1{#/blank#} to sing together with hundreds of other people while you are at home alone. You can do this in a virtual choir. Virtual choir members record themselves while they perform alone on video. These videos are uploaded onto the Internet, and then they are put {#blank#}2{#/blank#} into one video that you can see online—a virtual choir. Anyone can take part in a virtual choir from anywhere—all you need is a video camera and an Internet {#blank#}3{#/blank#}. You do not even need a {#blank#}4{#/blank#}. A virtual choir helps connect {#blank#}5{#/blank#} people together. Many people do not have close friends or {#blank#}6{#/blank#} who have the same interest in music. Many others do not have the chance to join a local choir. A virtual choir {#blank#}7{#/blank#} them to add their voices to those of other {#blank#}8{#/blank#} and become part of the global community. It has {#blank#}9{#/blank#} to be a positive influence on the lives of many people. As one virtual choir member said, "Music helps me to … forget my problems. With music, I become someone {#blank#}10{#/blank#}."

Since 1912, The Nederlander Organization has continued the tradition pf operating historic theatres, producing and presenting the best theatrical and concert events. The following are a few of its Broadway, theatres.

GERSHWIN THEATRE: 222 W SIST ST,NEW YORK, NY 10019

Home of the Broadway smash-hit musical Wicked, Gershwin Theatre was named in honor of one of America's greatest composers, George Gershwin. The theatre's circular hall was designed to display the names and photographs of Broadway's own "Theater Hall of Fame, Opened in 1972 with 1,900 seats, it is one of the Nederlander Organization's. nine Broadway theatres.

DURHAMPERFORMING ARTS CENTER: 123 VVIAN STREET, DURHAM, NC 27701

Since its opening in 2008, DPAC has become the center for entertainment in North Carolina With 2,700 scats, DPAC truly has "something for everyone," and hosts more' than 200performances yearly. DPAC welcomes all guests and events in an open, friendly, and respectful setting. It stands committed against all forms of discrimination.

DOLBY THEATRE:6801 HOLLYWOOD BLVD, HOLLYWOCD, CALIFORNIA 90028

Dolby Theatre, built in 2001, delivers the most natural, lifelike sensory experience with the latest innovations in "Dolby entertainment technology," including: DolbyAtmos^TM, a breakthrough audio technology: Its cutting edge technologies attract, many world's biggest movie premieres, notable television awards events, and, performances. With 3,400 seats, it is one of two Broadway theatres in Los Angeles.

WINTER GARDEN THEATRE: 1634 BROADWAY, NEW YORK, NY 10019

The playhouse occupies the second American Horse Exchange, built by William K. Vanderbilt in 1896, when Longacre (now Times Square) was the center of the horse and carriage trade, By 1911, it had been rented out, as horses had given way to automobiles. The Winter Garden was converted into a theatre in 1911. It served as a movie house from 1928 to1933 when Warner Brothers rented it, Winter Garden Theatre. has l,600 seats and is one of Broadway theatres, The sound of music: the classic musical is now playing, at the Winter Garden Theatre.