Free energy is everywhere around us. There are many ways to make and collect energy from various sources like sun, wind and water. People also realize that everyday stuff can be a source of energy too. For example, riding a bike, running or just walking, etc. We simply have to change our way of thinking if we want to change the world.

    So comes the idea of solar roadways. Are they the road of future? Why use roads just for driving and collecting tolls (过路费)? Why don't we use them for collecting energy?

    The US Department of Transportation recently awarded $100,000 to Solar Roadways to build the first ever Solar Road Panel. So how do these future roads work?

    The Solar Road Panels will contain embedded (嵌入的) LEDs which “paint” the road lines from beneath to provide safer nighttime driving as well as to give drivers instant instructions such as detour (绕行) ahead. The road will be able to sense wildlife on the road and can warn drivers to “slow down”. There will also be embedded heating elements in the surface to prevent snow and ice buildup, providing safer winter driving.

    Replacing asphalt (沥青) roads and parking lots with Solar Roadway Panels will be a major step toward stopping climate change. Fully electric vehicles will be able to recharge along the roadway and in parking lots, finally making electric cars practical for long trips.

    We just can't wait to see more of these roads all over the world in the near future.

    There is an old style out there of young girls talking endlessly on the phone with one another. It's an idea that is far from untrue in many families. I remember being a twelve-year-old and spending some quality time on the phone with my girl-friends, even though we'd seen each other at school. I didn't really have anything to talk about, I guess, but I think I was just happy to have someone else to talk to and that someone wanted to talk to me.

    We call this phenomenon (现象) of girls going on forever over the regular phone “girl talk”. And these days, girl talk has spread far beyond the old phone-teens communicate with each other pretty much nonstop through cell phone, texting，online chat. Is girl talk a good thing? According to experts, it can be-in limited quantities.

    Girl talk has its place. But too much of it, especially the kind during which problems are talked about endlessly can be not such a good thing. Psychologists (心理学家) think that too much of that kind of talking can lead to emotional problems such as depression (沮丧) and anxiety. Girls, much more so than boys, will always think of a problem and get worried, making the problem worse other than solving it. The best way is to try to guide the conversation toward something positive, or to do something about the problem rather than sit around and chat about it endlessly.

    In no particular order, here are some songs on the Music app of my phone:

On a Sunday Afternoon by Lighter Shade of Brown—A student of mine introduced this rap song lo me all the way back in the early 1990s, when 1 was teaching Spanish at a local university. The story in the song takes place not too far from where I live in Los Angeles. It's a good "driving" song, nothing complicated or "deep".

    Say Something by A Great Big World—A more recent song about a couple losing contact with each other. The piano part is very little playing but beautiful.

    American Pie by Don McLean—Another song from my youth in the 80s, very popular with almost every American of my generation. It retells some of the key events of the middle 20th century, a song of happy memories of the past and wanting to return to those better times.

    The Weight by The Band—Another old song, originally made public in 1968, but one I didn't hear until I was in high school more than 10 years later. I don't understand the words to the song completely, but the feeling of the song is very comforting to me.

Under the Bridge by Red Hot Chili Peppers—This Los Angeles group wrote a song that 1 used to listen to when I first moved to LA more than 25 years ago. I didn't know anyone here when I first arrived. When I got bored, I used to drive up and down the major streets that cross the city from east to west, listening to this song about the "city of angel" being as "lonely as I am. (Don t worry! I have plenty of friends now.)

    “That one looks just like a sheep! And look over there. That one looks like a horse!” Do you remember lying on your back in a grassy field on a summer afternoon, discovering the soft shapes in the clouds in the sky? Those were the good old days when you could see anything and everything in the clouds.

    But now people look at the sky and see clouds in the shape of a motor company's advertising logo (商标),or a message inviting them to go out and buy a certain brand (品牌) of beer. These cloud pictures are not products of their imaginations. Instead, they are produced by a machine. These new floating advertisements are called Flogos; the name stands for “floating logos.” They' re made from a mixture of soapy foam (泡沫)and a lighter-than-air gas such as helium, and they can be made into different sizes and shapes depending on the advertisement.

    Flogos can last up to an hour if weather conditions are good, and they can fly several kilometers high. Advertisers can rent a Flogo machine for$2,500 a day. The set-up is normally performed within 1 to 2 hours, and it will release four Flogos per minute. Advertisers can fill the air with any shape or message they want.

    Some people are worried that the Flogos might not be pollution-free. However, the Flogo's inventor insists that the soap he uses is natural, and that a Flogo just dissipates in the air, leaving nothing behind. Though it may be true that Flogos are environmentally friendly, some people believe that the natural clouds in our memory may be replaced by man-made ones. They are afraid that soon there will be nowhere left where their imaginations can float freely.

    Family fights are never pleasant. Whether you are dealing with a loud sister or a stubborn mom or dad, the situation can be bad. At least that's what we have learned to expect.

    What if it could be different? What if family fights and conflicts could be turned into opportunities to become closer? What if problems could be solved with everyone walking away feeling more deeply cared for and loved?

    Family fighting is, on one level, about power. Someone is telling someone else what to do. In a short moment, emotions can be brought out and the fight is on. You can go down that old road or you can try something different.

    In any fight, you have a need to be listened to and understood. People raise their voices and shout at each other because they're not being listened to. It's totally unconscious. You want your mom or dad to listen and understand. But you always seems to forget the person you're fighting with has the same need to be listened to. So if you can put aside your need for a few minutes, the situation will change quickly. Give the other person some time to express his or her feelings, and you will earn your turn to be listened to.

    And while you are listening, you have to listen for the right information. The best way to do this in emotional situations is to forget most of the words because many people can't express what they are feeling with words alone, especially when they are upset.

    But if the situation starts to get out of hand, it would be wise to just calm down and leave the problem until later because many fights happen at the wrong time. The situation will die down quickly, usually in less than 30 seconds. You can either move on to problem solving or reach an agreement to work on it at a better time.

    This way, everyone will feel respected and listened to, even when there is conflict. Emotions will be understood and respected, and it will bring your family closer together.

Video calls are a common occurrence, but have you imagined being able to touch the person on the other end of the line? Scientists are making this a reality.

Researchers at the University of new South Wales, Australia have invented a soft skin stretch device (SSD). A haptic device that can recreate the sense of touch. Haptic technology mimics the experience of touch by stimulating localized areas of the skin in ways that are similar to what is felt in the real world, through force, vibration or motion.

Vibration is the most common haptic technology today and has been built into many electronic devices such as one attached to the back of the trackpad (触摸板) in laptops, which simulates a button clicking. However, haptic feedback with vibration becomes less sensitive when used continuously. The existing technology also has great difficulty recreating the sense of touch with objects in virtual environments or located remotely. According to Mai Thanh Thai, lead author of the study.

The new technology overcomes issues with existing haptic devices. The research team introduced a novel method to recreate the sense of touch through a soft artificial "muscles".

"Our three-way directional skin stretch device, built into the fingertips of the wearable glove we also created is like wearing a second skin-- its soft stretchable and mimics the sense of touch-- and will enable new forms of haptic communication to enhance everyday activities" said Thanh Nho Do, senior author of the study.

Imagine you are at home and you call your friend who is in Australia. You wear a haptic glove with the SSDs, and your friends also wears a glove with integrated 3D force sensors. If your friend picks up an object, it will physically press against your friend's fingers. And their glove with 3D force sensors will measure with interactions. The force signals can be sent to your glove so your device will generate the same 3D forces. Making you experience the same sense of touch as your friend.

The haptic devices could be applied in various situations, allowing users to feel objects inside a virtual world or at a distance. It could also be used in medical practices. Doctors can feel a patient's organ tissues. With surgical tools without touching them.