Many people believe that you lose the ability to learn new languages as you get older. Language experts, however, will tell you that you're never too old to learn a new language. As you get older, it can be more difficult to learn a new language, though.

    Children and adults learn new languages in different ways．For children, language is their life. They study for thousands of hours every year, because they need to learn languages to become part of their communities. Adults, on the other hand，are already part of a language community. Learning a new language means becoming part of another language community, and adults seldom get the chance to practice as much as young children do.

    Moreover, children learning a new language are expected to make mistakes. This gives them freedom when learning to be daring and confident. Adults, however, often feel pressured to be perfect when learning a new language. This can discourage many people and make it even harder to learn a new language.

    Research has shown that children who learn a new language when they are very young will not be likely to have a “foreign” accent when speaking a different language. Some scientists also believe that it can take up to 10,000 hours of study to master a new language. This can be difficult for adults to achieve, but young children can accumulate(积累) those hours over several years as they grow up.

    When young children learn a new language, they come to see multiple languages as a “normal” part of society. This mindset (思维模式) helps them learn a new language without feeling like they're doing something unusual or “too hard”.

    So if you want to learn a new language, go for it! It's never too late to learn a new language. If you're older, it may take more work, but it can be done. If you're a young child, though, now is the time to step out and learn a new language!

    After the examination, the doctor told my parents my sight would get worse and that I would lose my sight finally. On the way home from hospital, no one said a word. One day, would I only imagine the scenery beyond the glass rather than see it?

    That September, I entered middle school. Most nights I had homework that included an armful of books to read. To keep up with other children, I took great trouble to finish the task. With my nose a couple of inches from the page, I was tired easily. What's worse, after I had read several pages on my own, the words slipped off the page into inky pools.

    However, then I did not have audio books and electric devices like kids do now. Instead, Mum volunteered to read out loud. Mum worked part-time, cleaned the house, cooked and spent time with Grandma. In spite of being so busy, she showed up in my room like clockwork. She put on her reading glasses. Mum always thought those glasses made her look old. To me, she looked like a teacher.

    In my room, Mum's voice raced with the ticking of the clock. Being forced to focus on listening, I found a way to keep my marks up and compete with the other kids. When the teacher asked a question, I raised my hand with confidence. Teachers praised me for having a good memory. Reading removed my fear for my failing sight, reading also made me curious about other people's challenges and how they managed. Though I could not use my eyes to fix on each passage, my mind lit up with every new book.

    True to what the doctor said, the worst came, but thanks to Mum, my sense of hearing now allows me to “see”. This was the most precious gift from a mother to her child.

    Starting Cycling

    We have two services designed to give people the confidence and knowledge to cycle successfully.

    Lessons

    All our instructors have been trained to National Standards level of “Bikeability”. This means you will be trained to a standard consistent across the whole country.

    There are 3 levels of skills to progress through. Children would start with levels 1 & 2, progressing from the playground or park to cycle on less busy local roads. Teenager and adult beginners can also learn levels 1 & 2 in an off-road and quiet environment.

    Confident teenagers and adults can broaden their skills by learning level 3, using multi-lane (多道) roads and larger roundabouts (环岛). We provide both a complete package of lessons for the beginner or individual lessons tailored to the client. You can ride a bike but don't feel confident about right turns on multi-lane roads. Whatever the need we can address and practice until perfect!

    Everyone can be taught to ride a bike!

    We train both adults and children.

    We cover London Zones 1 & 2

    The cost is ￡30 per hour.

    Guided Ride

    We know that riding on the roads in London can be scary, and if you have to navigate (确定行车路线) as well it can become a real hard task! The Guided Ride service takes all the stress out of it for you by providing the following:

    Route planned in advance to suit your skill level. Route map provided to you.

    Cycle and equipment checked. We will teach you a simple method to check basic roadworthiness (车辆性能) of your bike that you can perform on a weekly basis.

    Route discussed and focus given to any areas requiring special attention.

    Cycle along with the instructor close behind. Here the traffic can be controlled by the instructor and rider observed.

    Occasionally stopping to discuss events.

    We currently cover London Zones 1 & 2. Please contact us if your requirements are outside of these areas.

    Cost ￡30

    Here are some must-know festivals from a handbook which you cannot miss in some Asia countries.

    Singapore Night Festival

    Aug. 17-25 The annual Singapore Night Festival is a celebration of the island nation's arts and cultural heritage (遗产). A highlight of the festival is the interactive light show that transforms the front of surrounding buildings into artistic wonders. http://www.nightfestival.com

    Royal Floria

    Aug. 25-Sep. 2 This year's event marks the 10th anniversary of the Royal Floria in Putrajaya, with more than 400,000 floral displays. Floral designers and landscape architects from 10 countries are set to show their talent with their arts and cultural creations. http://www.floriaputrajaya.com

    Tet Trung Nguyen

    Aug. 25 It is believed that during Tet Trung Nguyen (Ghost Festival), spirits of the dead return home in search of their loved ones. Vietnamese pay homage(敬意) to their ancestors during the festivals by preparing feasts as prayer offerings. http://www.vietnamtourism.com

    George Town Festival

    Aug. 4-Sep. 2 The George Town Festival was inaugurated(创立) in 2010 in conjunction with the city's designation as a UNESCO World Heritage site. It has become one of the region's important cultural festivals, showing myriad events that include musical performances, art exhibitions and film screenings taking place across multiple venues. http://www.georgetownfestival.com

    Sharpshooters refer to those who are skilled at firing a gun and accurately hitting what they are aiming at. However, some fish are also called amazing sharpshooters. People wonder how they hit their targets without using tools? By spitting! The fish shoot so accurately that they rarely miss their target.

    These amazing fish are archerfish (印度射水鱼).There are several different types of archerfish living in Southeast Asia. They spit at their dinner to catch it. To catch dinner, a fish first sets itself in a certain place, for example just below the surface of the water. It puts the tip of its mouth so it barely breaks through the water. Then, the fish waits for an unsuspecting insect to land on a leaf or branch hanging over the water.

    When an unsuspecting, or unknowing insect lands, the fish attacks. The fish squeezes its gill (腮)covers very rapidly, which forces water into the fish's mouth. In the roof of its mouth the fish has a groove (槽）. The fish forms the small groove and its tongue into a narrow tube by pressing its tongue up against its groove. The water forced into the fish's mouth is forcefully pushed out of the fish's mouth through the tube. Archerfish have been known to send a stream up to 5 meters (16 feet). However, archerfish can only shoot insects up to 1-2 meters (3-6 feet) away due to their limited accuracy.

    When the unsuspecting insect is hit with a sudden stream of water, it is knocked into or falls into the water. Once in the water, the insect becomes dinner. Archerfish learn how to spit when they are young. They get more accurate with practice. Adult archerfish rarely miss.

    Within a meter, archerfish will often spring out of the water and grab an insect in their mouths.

    In a world full of Kates and Sarahs, you might think it'd be nice to have a unique name to help me stand out in a crowd. Being named Stacia (pronounced stay-sha) is not so lucky to me. I'll get the occasional "Your name is so pretty" after introducing myself, but eventually my name causes me more frustration than happiness. For example, Microsoft Word always tries to tell me my name isn't a real word. I couldn't even pronounce my own name correctly until I was five.

    I once had a professor who pronounced my name differently each class. After a while I stopped correcting him, and that's been my reaction to strangers ever since. In other cases, I'd rather tell the seller my name is Staci and save both of us, as well as the people standing behind me in line, valuable time.

    Meeting new people gives me anxiety, and I've realized it's easier just to lie about my name altogether in certain cases. Actually I did—so many times that Brittany is now my chosen "going out" name. It may have caused some confusion for my friends at first, who would let out a small laugh or have a confused look, but I've trained them to keep a straight face whenever I whip out this fake (假的) name. Now going out on weekends means I get to have a shift of identity.

    Frustrations aside, being the owner of a unique name has made me appreciate the little things in life. Someone pronouncing or spelling my name correctly on the first try brings me more joy than it probably should. I also love it when I meet another Stacia and we get to bond over our shared struggles.

    To any other Stacias reading this—I feel you, girl. P. S. I apologize to any real Brittanys out there. Thanks for letting me borrow your name.