Oyster

What is an Oyster card?

    Oyster is the easiest way to pay for journeys on the bus, Tube, tram, DocklandsLight Railway (DLR), London Overground and National Rail journeys in London Youcan store your travel cards, Bus & Tram Pass, season tickets and credit topay for journeys as you go.

Where to get an Oyster card?

There are a number of ways for you to get an Oyster card:

• At over 3,900 Oyster Ticket stops

• At Tube and London Overground station ticket offices

• At some National Rail stations

• At London Travel information Centres

• Online at tfl. gov. uk/oyster

How to use an Oyster card?

    To pay the correct fare on the Tube , DLR, London Overground andNational Rail services, you must always touch in on the yellow Oyster cardreader at the start of your journey, and touch out at the end. If you don't, amaximum cash Oyster fare will be charged. When using the bus or tram, you mustonly touch in at the start, but not at the end of your journey.

   What happens if I don't visit London very often?

    Don't worry. Any pay as you go credit on your card will notexpire (过期), so you cankeep it for your next visit or lend it to a friend.

Fares

Traveling by Tube from Central London (Zone l)to Heathrow (Zone6)

Adult Oyster single fare

£ 4. 20 Monday to Friday 06:30 - 09:30 and 16:00 - 19:00

£ 2. 70 at all other times including public holidays

Adult single cash fare £ 5.00

For further information，visit tfl.gov.uk /fares.

    Singapore's public transport system is one of the best in the world, so you should have no problem finding your way around like a local. There are three main forms of public transport that you would find in any other major city－trains, buses and taxis.

TRAINS

    Trains run from 6:00 am to midnight. Single trip tickets start at 80 cents. If you buy an EZ-Link card for $15, you can ride the trains and buses as you like.

If you need more information, just call Transit Link on 1800 767 4333.

BUSES

    There are several bus services in Singapore and fares start at 80 cents. Be sure always ask the driver the cost of your ticket as he cannot give change.

If you need help, just call Transit Link on 1800 767 4333.

TAXIS

    There are three main taxi companies－City Cab, Comfort and Tibs. Booking can also be easy by calling the numbers listed above.

RENTAL CARS

    Driving in Singapore is a pleasure and if you like to travel at your own pace, renting a car is a good choice. Renting takes away the hassle of getting to places around Singapore. Just sit back and enjoy the city. It also means you'll get to see a lot more that a trains or a bus won't let you see.

    For car rental, call Avis on +65 6737 1668.

    American researchers found females are the more talkative sex because of a special “language protein” in the brain.

    The study, conducted by neuroscientists (神经学家) and psychologist from the University of Maryland, concluded that women talked more because they had more of the Foxp2 protein. The research, published in the Journal of Neuroscience, found that higher levels were found among humans that were women but in rats that were males. Their findings came after it was previously claimed that ladies speak about 20,000 words a day — over 13,000 more than men. “This study is one of the first to report a sex difference in the expression of a language-associated protein in humans or animals,” said Prof Margaret McCarthy, who led the study. In their study, the researchers attempted to determine what might make male rats more vocal than their female friends.

    They separated four-day-old rats from their mothers and then counted the number of times they cried out in the “ultrasonic (超声波的) range”, the frequencies higher than humans can hear, over five minutes. While both sexes called out hundreds of cries, the males called out twice as often, they found. But when the pups were returned to their mother's cage, she fussed over her sons first. Tests conducted on the parts of the brain known to be associated with vocal calls showed the male pups have up to twice as much Foxp2 protein as the females. The researchers then increased the production in the brains of female pups and reduced it in males. This led to the female rats crying out more often and their mothers showing more interest in them. In contrast, males became less “talkative”.

    The researchers then tested samples from ten children, aged between three and five, which showed that females had up to 30 per cent more of the Foxp2 protein than males, in a brain area key to language in humans.

    “Based on our observations, we assume higher levels of Foxp2 in girls and higher levels of Foxp2 in male rats is an indication that Foxp2 protein levels are associated with the more communicative sex,” said Prof McCarthy.

    “Our results imply Foxp2 as a component (成分) of the neurobiological basis of sex differences in vocal communication in mammals.”

    It's not easy being a teenager— nor is it easy being the parent of a teenager. You can make your child feel angry, hurt, or misunderstood by what you say without realizing it yourself. It is important to give your child the space he needs to grow while gently letting him know that you'll still be there for him when he needs you.

    Expect a lot from your child, just not everything. Except for health and safety problems, such as drug use or careless driving; consider everything else open to discussion. If your child is unwilling to discuss something, don't insist he tell you what's on his mind. The more you insist, the more likely that he'll clam up. Instead, let him attempt to solve things by himself. At the same time, remind him that you're always there for him if he seeks advice or help. Show respect for your teenager's privacy (隐私). Never read his mail or listen in on personal conversations.

    Teach your teenager that the family phone is for the whole family. If your child talks on the family's telephone for too long, tell him he can talk for 15 minutes, but then he must stay off the phone for at least an equal period of time. This not only frees up the line so that other family members can make and receive calls, but teaches your teenager moderation (节制). Or if you are open to the idea, allow your teenager his own phone that he pays for with his own pocket money or a part-time job.

    A new "paparazzi-proof" scarf has got heatedly welcomed since launched. A new "paparazzi-proof" scarf could be a game-changer for celebrities who prefer to shy away from the stage light. The ISHU scarf is the creation of Dutch-born fashion entrepreneur Saif Siddiqui and is designed to "give people their right to privacy back". A host of celebrities including Cameron Diaz, singer Joe Jonas, Bayern Munich footballer Jerome Boateng and music producer Major Lazer have worn the ISHU after it was spotted at London Fashion Week last year.

    It works by reflecting the light back into a camera, effectively becoming "invisibility clothes" for celebrities who don't want their photos taken. Anyone wearing the scarf is protected from mobile flash photograph, with the fashion accessory's fabric(附件结构)effectively blocking out any unwanted pictures, although it doesn't stop no-flash photographs from being taken.

    The 28-year-old Siddiqui was inspired while visiting family in Amsterdam in 2009 when his friends attempted to take a photo of him using an iPhone in front of some bikes. "He noticed that the bike's reflector carried the flash of his mobile camera in a way that confused the faces of his friends in the picture." the ISHU website explains. "He immediately realized that if developed into the right product, this feature would be an ideal solution for his friends and is now available to the public who want to keep their private moments in public private. "Saif put together a team of experts who dug into the science of light and reflection, and how to blend technology with fashion."

    He told Decoded Magazine: "The ISHU scarf effectively allows an individual to control what pictures and videos are taken of him." There are no more unwanted pictures and videos on Snapchat, Instagram, or Facebook! Everyone carries a phone with them nowadays that has an amazing camera. So, it all made sense to me." More ISHU products are set to launch in August, with mobile phone cases set to launch in the next few weeks. The ISHU is currently sold out but you can pre-order it online for￡289.

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.