New research shows sheep are clever

    People often make jokes about how dull sheep are, but new research shows they may be cleverer than we think. Researchers at the University of Cambridge discovered that Welsh mountain sheep have brainpower that equals rodents (啮齿动物). Tests found that the sheep can map the area they live in, and some may even be able to plan ahead.

    Young fish prefer noisy neighbors

    A new study has shown that young fish like to live on reefs (暗礁) with noisy neighbors! Researchers from the universities of Auckland and Bristol found that young fish looking for a home choose areas where other noisy fish live. The scientists produced all kinds of sounds which had been recorded in different natural environments. The young fish seemed to prefer the sounds of natural reefs, compared with noisy animals! The scientists compared the choice to a music fan wandering around at a music festival, choosing to set up a tent closest to the music they like best!

    Butterflies are disappearing

    A new study has shown that 17 species (物种) of butterfly found in Europe have dropped by 70% in the last 20 years. The information collected from 3,000 sites across 15 countries shows it may be caused by the loss (减少) of grasslands covered with flowers. You can encourage butterflies to come into your garden by planting flowers.

    The new study shows that we spend more time using the mobile Internet reading newspapers or magazines or doing some other things. According to the European Interactive Advertising Association(EIAA), the average European spends 4.8 hours reading newspapers and magazines but 1.6 hours more using the mobile Internet a week.

    The EIAA questioned 15,000 people in 15 European countries, looking at how people are using the Internet and its influence on their everyday lives. It found that the mobile Internet is increasingly finding its way into the public awareness. Over 71 million Europeans now have Internet access on their mobile phones. In the UK, 10 million people now access the Internet through their mobile phones and spend 6.3 hours doing so in a week.

    Unsurprisingly, younger generations in the UK are leading the way, with nearly half of the country's 16-to 24-year-olds and a quarter of 25- to 34-year-olds using the Internet, spending 6.5 and 6.2 hours online each week.

     Entertainment plays a main role in our mobile Internet lives, with one in five British people using their phones for online games, a third listening to the online radio and 39 percent watching films, TV or other videos at least once a week. One third of those using an Internet phone said they received videos, images or other multimedia on their mobile, and 61 percent said they passed on contents they received.

    From a communication point of view, 80 percent of those questioned agreed that the Internet had made it easier for them to stay in touch with friends and family.

    Alison Fennah, director of the EIAA, said the mobile Internet use had come to the point that marketers should be looking to develop strategies (策略) that connect with consumers more effectively. “Better devices as well as improved consumer motivation that start coming together in 2011 can make a great difference to extending the online experience.” Fennah said.

    Papa, as a son of a dirt-poor farmer, left school early and went to work in a factory, for education was for the rich then. So, the world became his school. With great interest, he read everything he could lay his hands on, listened to the town elders and learned about the world beyond his tiny hometown. “There's so much to learn,” he'd say. “Though we are born stupid, only the stupid remain that way.'' He was determined that none of his children would be denied an education.

    Thus, Papa insisted that we learn at least one new thing each day. Though, as children, we thought this was crazy, it would never have occurred to us to deny Papa a request. And dinner time seemed perfect for sharing what we had learned. We would talk about the news of the day; no matter how insignificant, it was never taken lightly. Papa would listen carefully and was ready with some comment, always to the point.

    Then came the moment-the time to share the day's new learning.

Papa, at the head of the table, would push back his chair and pour a glass of red wine, ready to listen.

    “Felice,” he'd say. “tell me what you learned today.”

    “I learned that the population of Nepal is...”

Silence.

    Papa was thinking about what was said, as if the salvation (拯救) of the world would depend upon it. “The population of Nepal. Hmm. Well...” he'd say. “Get the map; let's see where Nepal is.” And the whole family went on a search for Nepal.

    This same experience was repeated until each family member had a turn. Dinner ended only after we had a clear understanding of at least half a dozen such facts.

    As children, we thought very little about these educational wonders. Our family, however, was growing together, sharing experiences and participating in one another's education. And by looking at us, listening to us, respecting our input, affirming (打定) our value, giving us a sense of dignity. Papa was unquestionably our most influential teacher.

    Later during my training as a future teacher, I studied with some of the most famous educators. They were imparting what Papa had known all along-the value of continual learning. His technique has served me well all my life. Not a single day has been wasted, though I can never tell when knowing the population of Nepal might prove useful.

    Scientists have found evidence of a link between social and economic status and childhood attention deficit disorder(ADHD)(注意力缺陷多动障碍)in the UK. A team led by the University of Exeter Medical School analysed data from the Millennium Cohort Study, a database of more than 19, 500 UK children born between 2000 and 2002 .The study was published in the Journal of Child Psychology and Psychiatry.

    Findings showed that more children with ADHD came from families below the poverty line than the UK population as a whole, with average family incomes for households whose study child was affected by ADHD at £324 per week, compared to £391 for those whose child was not. The study found the odds (机会)of parents in social housing having a child with ADHD was roughly three times greater than for those who owned their own homes.

    The team also found that the odds of younger mothers having a child with ADHD were significantly higher than for other mothers. Mothers with no qualifications were more than twice as likely to have a child with ADHD than those with degrees, and lone (孤独的)parents were more likely to have a child with ADHD diagnosis than households with two live-in parents.

    Information was gathered from surveys when the cohort children were nine months old, and at the ages of three, five, seven and eleven.

    Dr Ginny, of the University of Exeter Medical School, who led the study, said, "There is a genetic element to ADHD, but this study provides strong evidence that ADHD is also associated with a disadvantaged social and economic background. Some people believe that ADHD in children causes disadvantage to the economic situation of their family, but we found no evidence to support that theory. It's important to discover more about the causes of this disorder so that we can look towards prevention, and so that we can target treatment and support effectively. "

    Reading is the ability to process text, understand its meaning and to integrate it with what the reader already knows. Of all the reading skills speed-reading is a necessary skill in the Internet age. We skim over articles, e-mails and WeChat to try to grasp key words and the essential meaning of a certain text. Surrounded with information from our electronic devices, it would be impossible to cope if we read word by word, line by line. But a new trend calls on people to unplug and enjoy reading slowly, listing benefits beyond the intelligent stimulation.

    A recent story from The Wall Street Journal reported on a book club in Wellington, New Zealand, where members meet in a cafe and turn off their smartphones. They sink into cozy chairs and read in silence for an hour. Unlike tradition book club, the point of the slow reading club isn't exchanging ideas about a certain book, but to get away from electronic devices and read in a quiet, relaxed environment. According to The Wall Street Journal, the Wellington book club is just one example of a movement started by book lovers who miss the old-fashioned way of reading before the Internet and smartphones.

    Slow readers, such as The Atlantic's Maura Kelly, say a regular reading habit sharpens the mind, improves concentration, reduces stress levels and deepens the ability to sympathize. Another study published last year in Science showed that reading novels helps people understand others' mental states and beliefs, a fundamental skill in building relationships.

    Yet technology has made us less attentive readers. Screens have changed our reading patterns from the top-to-right, left-to-right sequence to a wild skimming and skipping pattern as we hunt for important words and information. Reading text punctuated with links leads to weaker comprehension than reading plain text. The Internet may have made us stupider, says Patrick Kingsley from The Guardian. Because of the Internet, he says, we have become very good at collecting a wide range of interesting news, but we are also gradually forgetting how to sit back, reflect, and relate all these facts to each other.

    Slow reading means a return to an uninterrupted, straight pattern, in a quiet environment free of distractions. "Aim for 30 minutes a day," advises Kelly from The Atlantic. "You can squeeze in that half hour pretty easily if only during your free moments, you pick up a meaningful work of literature," Kelly said. "Reach for your e-reader, if you like. Kindles make books like War and Peace less heavy, not less substantive, and also ensure you'll never lose your place."

You should try your best to create your own family library so that you and your family are always learning. "It is a great mistake to think that education is finished when young people leave school. Education is never finished even if you grow older," said Mrs Child in The Mother's Book. "Collecting a library of books in your home is really helpful to your family.”

"What is really interesting about having so many books in your home is that a book you purchase has a chapter about the deeper knowledge of your favorite subject at school," said a university graduate. Researchers in a study tries to identify what parents do has an influence on how well their children do on standardized tests. One positive aspect they find is the availability of a large number of books at home. This has a stronger connection, especially when you read to your children every day. The more books your older kids have access to at home, the more likely they are just to be reading for fun, rather than having to wait for weekly trips to the library.

John Henry, one educated parent, said, "I have been homeschooling my children using the philosophy of A Thomas Jeffer son Education. This philosophy of learning is based on the reading of classic books." Clinton Fadiman said, "When you reread a classic, you do not see more in the book than you did before; you see more in you than before." Classic books also make you smarter and wiser! The wisdom comes in the examples in the lives of the characters.

"It is within your power to guide your youth in their reading and to cultivate in their hearts a desire for good books. It is the most unfortunate if a person is not possessed with the desire for good reading. The reading habit, like charity, should begin at home," said Mrs Child.