If you find yourself checking your phone first thing in the morning, if you find you're text-messaging while driving, checking your phone instead of working on an important assignment—you are addicted.

    Don't worry. The new NoPhone might be just the thing you need. It looks and feels exactly like a smartphone, but it does nothing. It's just a piece of plastic that you can carry around in your hand to fool yourself.

    NoPhone is currently a prototype(手机模型) that will cost only $12 once it hits the market. Its makers are trying to raise $30,000 in order to cover the production and marketing costs.

    Dutch designer Ingmar Larsen, who helped create the NoPhone, said that he had the idea as a joke along with his friends Van Gould and Ben Langveld. To their great surprise, the idea received a lot of attention online and people from all over the world started placing requests for NoPhone of their own, so that's when the three friends decided to raise money for mass production.

    David H said," I used to sleep with my phone in my hand, but my night terrors would cause me to throw it across the room in an unconscious panic. With the NoPhone, I can still enjoy the comfort of holding a phone in my sleep, without waking up to a broken screen, thanks, NoPhone."

    If you're interested in NoPhone, but concerned about not being able to take selfies anymore, don't worry. The makers do have an update at no extra charge—the mirror sticker. That way, they say, you can enjoy "real-time" selfies with your friends when they're standing right behind you.

    March1, 2019

    Dear Residents

    RE. NOTICE OF CONSTRUCTION-SHORELINE EROSION PROTECTION

    Sheet Pile Wall，Rip Rap Protection(抛石护岸) and Spot Repair on SA SU Road between Church and Jimmy Road, Tsawout First Nation. Our File: CPMS 6849

    Beginning April 1, 2019, our community, Tsawout First Nation, will be beginning work on the Shoreline Erosion(侵蚀)Protection project along SA SU Road between Church and Jimmy Road. Workers employed by Donn Mann Excavating and Tsawout First Nation Public Works Department will be onsite working from 7: 00 am until 5: 00 pm daily Monday to Friday until September 30, 2019.

    PROJECT RELATED INFORMATION AND RECOMMENDATIONS

    Traffic Delays -In order to safely and efficiently complete this construction item, there will be some lane(车道)restrictions. Car drivers must follow the polices orders, slow down the speed, and pass the construction area extremely cautiously. The construction item may cause traffic delays. We will make every effort to minimize any potential inconvenience and provide you with the latest notice when disruptions(中断)must occur. Police and emergency vehicle access will be maintained at all times.

Truck Traffic -At times you will notice increased truck traffic in the construction area. Please be aware and use extra caution while driving

    Vibration -You may experience some vibration at home during the construction. The shaky motion happens due to the work being done. We recommend that you remove or secure objects on shelves and walls.

    This construction item is part of the Tsawout First Nation Shoreline Erosion Protection project that will be beginning in April 2019 and is expected to be completed by the end of 2019. Please see upcoming newsletters and notices for further updates.

    Thank you for your patience and cooperation

    Sincerely

    Rob Mortin

    Tsawout First Nation

    Austin Perine, a four-year-old boy, discovered that sympathy for the less fortunate can produce superhuman results.

    Once Austin's father, TJAustin, took Austin to the Firehouse Ministries, a local shelter that provides housing, food, and other services for homeless men. As they drove by the redbrick building, they saw a group of 25 homeless men standing on the street corner. "Dad, they look sad," Austin said. "Can we take them some food and make them smile?"

    That day, Austin used his allowance to buy each man a Burger King sandwich and handed the food out himself.

    Seeing what their presence meant to the men at the ministry, Austin and TJ returned the next week. After he returned every week for five weeks, word of Austin's acts of kindness spread through social media and national news outlets. Burger King jumped aboard, agreeing to donate $1,000 a month for an entire year toward the cause. Soon, churches and shelters across the country began inviting Austin to come and distribute food in other poor areas. Whereas before Austin and TJ could feed 25 to 50 people at a time, now, thanks to corporate and community support, they can feed 800 to 2,000 people at once.

    But Austin isn't just filling bellies. He's improving the lives of those he meets. On that first trip to Firehouse Ministries, TJ and Austin talked to a man named Raymont. The respect Austin gave 41-year-old Raymont touched the man. TJ helped Raymont collect all the credentials(资格) he needed to get a driver's license. The license helped Raymont get a job. And with money in the bank, he was able to rent his own apartment. All that was made possible because a little boy took the time to care.

    You've heard of the fat suit and the pregnancy suit; now meet AGNES—the old person suit.

    AGNES stands for "Age Gain Now Empathy(换位体验)System" and was designed by researchers at MIT's AgeLab to let you know what it feels like—physically—to be 75 years old. "The business of old age demands new tools," said Joseph Coughlin, director of the AgeLab. "While focus groups and observations and surveys can help you understand what the older consumer needs and wants, young marketers never get that ‘Ah ha!' moment of having difficulty opening a jar, or getting in and out of a car. That's what AGNES provides. "

    Coughlin and his team carefully adjusted the suit to make the wearer just as uncomfortable as an old person who has spent a lifetime eating poorly and not doing much exercise. Special shoes provide a feeling of imbalance, while braces on the knees and elbows limit joint mobility. Gloves give the feeling of decreased strength and mobility in the hands and wrists, and earplugs make it difficult to hear high-pitched sounds and soft tones. A helmet with straps(带)attached to it presses the spine(脊柱).

    VAGNES has been used most recently by a group of students working on a design of an updated walker. By wearing the suit they could see for themselves what design and materials would make the most sense for a physically limited older person. Coughlin said the suit has also been used by clothing companies, car companies and retail goods companies to help them understand the limitations of an older consumer. An unexpected benefit they've found with AGNES is that it has become a powerful tool to get younger people to invest in their long-term health.

Linda Brown, a real estate agent, believes that when it comes to solving homelessness, it takes a village. She spent nine years supporting homeless people in Springfield, Missouri, through a charitable organization called The Gathering Tree, which welcomed people a few times each week during daylight hours, providing a safe and welcoming place for them to take showers, socialize, or simply rest. But they had to close their doors for the night. "One cold winter night, I watched as my friends walked off into the darkness to a wet, cold camp, while we went home to a warm bed," Linda said, "I realized I had to do something."

She had an idea to create a village of tiny houses to make sure no one slept outside on her watch! Linda started fundraising. She began by appealing to her fellow estate agents in the area before branching out into local businesses.

Using these donations, Linda purchased a nearby abandoned area that already had the infrastructure in place. By February 2019, they'd built 31 tiny homes for their Eden Village and found residents for each one. All the residents must be good neighbors in order to stay in the village, and they certainly are! Linda was happy when she learned that the village actually increased local property values rather than lowering them as some people had feared.

Linda hasn't stopped working since Eden Village began. A second village opened in the fall of 2020, and there's a third location in the works as well! She hopes to have five villages across Springfield within the next five years, helping more than 200 homeless people get off the streets and into a new life.

To this day, Linda firmly believes that there are a million reasons someone can become homeless, but each of them can be solved with love and community involvement.

Following Zibo and Harbin, Tianshui, an ancient silk Road city in Northwest China's Gansu Province, became the latest place that has caused {#blank#}1{#/blank#} nationwide craze thanks to its malatang, or spicy hot pot. Tianshii spicy hot pot {#blank#}2{#/blank#}（make） by cooking raw ingredients（原料） —meats, vegetables and noodles, in a pot of boiling broth. Then they are rolled into a large steel basin, drizzled with garlic sauce, sprinkled with Tianshui peppercorns and crushed peanuts, {#blank#}3{#/blank#}（brush） with bright red chili oil, and colored with coriander and green onions. Fragrant and {#blank#}4{#/blank#}（visual） appealing, it provokes（刺激） taste buds on the tip of tourists' tongue. Different {#blank#}5{#/blank#} Sichuan cuisine, the secrets to the unique flavor and attractive appearance of Tianshui malatang come from local speciality ingredients in Tianshui—Gangu chili peppers and Maiji peppercorns, both {#blank#}6{#/blank#}（belong）to local speciality agricultural industries. Unlike the peppers used throughout Sichuan, the Tianshui pepper is fragrant and juicy. It {#blank#}7{#/blank#}（burn） in the mouth but is smooth in the stomach.

Tianshui not only has delicious spicy hot po t food, but also stands out for its distinctive {#blank#}8{#/blank#}（region）culture. Its grottoes and murals（石窟与壁画） are among the most famous art {#blank#}9{#/blank#}（form） in Gansu. The Maijishan Grottoes, {#blank#}10{#/blank#} are home to 221caves and more than 1,000 square meters of ancient murals, are known for their impressive beauty.