The human athlete has a special trick that no other animal has. It is called self-talk. Athletes talk to themselves to warm up, to focus and to help themselves believe they will win. A few simple words like “I can do it!” and “It is now or never!” can make the difference between winning gold or not.

    Self-talk is also used by speakers, actors and other performers. Before a speech, politicians believe that their words will win votes. And, self-talk helps students stay calm even when stumped by hard exam questions. Self-talk is a life skill you can use wherever you are, whenever you need it.

    The whole idea of talking to themselves seems strange to many people. Imagine your teacher saying, “For homework, talk to yourself for half an hour tonight.” You might think he is playing a joke on your class. Instead, adults teach kids all about talking to other people. There are many books on why, when, what and how to communicate with the rest of the world. Thus, you can grow up knowing a lot more about people around you than about yourself.

    It is good to speak and listen to others. But there is great value in making time to listen to yourself. When you do, you get to know yourself better. Along the way, you may discover the power you have for using words well.

    Such ideas are so exciting to psychologists that they have been trying to learn more about self-talk. In the study, people found certain lost items at home more easily when they talked to themselves while searching for the things.

    Why not write in a foreign language? If people feel free to choose their profession, their religion, and even their sex, why not just decide which language you want to write? Ever since Jhumpa published In Other Words in Italian, people have been asking me, “Why don't you write in Italian, Tim? After all, you've been in the country 35 years. What keeps you tied to English?” Is it just a question of economic convenience?

    Certainly economics can be important. It was the factor that pushed Conrad to abandon his Polish mother tongue. If it is not possible to publish at home, or to publish there as one would wish to publish, then one is likely to go elsewhere. And if to publish elsewhere one has to change language, then some authors are willing to take that step.

    Something of the same logic has driven many writers from Africa, Asia to write in French and English in recent years. There is also the fact that people in Europe and the West are interested in the countries they grew up in. Just as in the nineteenth century, novelists like Thomas Hardy could “sell” their familiarity with peasant life to a middle-class metropolitan public, so these writers have interested us with stories that might seem common in their home countries.

    There is also a real internationalism in the decision to change language. If you have “a message” and if English is the language that offers maximum spread, then it would seem appropriate to use it.

    All these make sense. Critics tend to pay attention only to those who have made a success of writing in a new language. In April 2014, a New York Times article essentially listed young literary stars who had switched to writing in the main Western languages. At this point, the native English speaker almost begins to feel at a disadvantage for having been born into the dominant culture. Should we perhaps head for Paris, like Beckett or Jonathan Littell, just to be between two worlds? Or look for something more exotic(异国的) and have ourselves translated back into English afterward? However, one fact is that changing languages doesn't always work.

    I did write a novel in Italian. But after rereading it, I decided against it. My work lost power with the switch of language. My real subject matter still had to do with England and it was to my home culture that my books were addressed. The second language never seems to mean quite as much as the first. In any event, after my early experiment, I never went back to write in Italian. Changing language is not the only way to bring energy to your writing.

    A dog can keep us company. Sweetie is a big dog who spends every Friday of the month in the Children's Area of our local library. Earlier today, I was so lucky to be nearby when she was partnering with a boy who was reading a mystery of Magic Tree House. Every time Sweetie listened to the boy reading the most challenging words, she would softly lick（舔）his hand which was holding the book. With his mom in the background, Sweetie and the young boy shared a 10-minute happy partnership, and he was rewarded by Sweetie's great attention to his every word.

    Next Sweetie had an appointment with the twins who took turns reading poetry. With each girl giggling over the funny words, Sweetie was also smiling with her tongue dropping a bit as they each read. After the 10-minute interaction was done, each girl gave Sweetie a gentle hug and were rewarded by Sweetie's foreleg bow.

    In speaking with Sweetie's owner and transportation “captain”, I learned that Sweetie had been specially trained to work as a service dog. She has retired（退休）after a career of wonderful service, and now she is “in her sunset years” in her service at the library.

    Sweetie has a special resting carpet behind the scenes in the Children's Area, so that she can refresh herself with fresh water and some food when she is tired and hungry. This is Sweetie's third summer that she has been the “regular” partner. Oh Fridays from 2 pm~4 pm, Sweetie is ready to listen and act as a devoted partner.

    A team of engineers at Harvard University has been inspired by Nature to create the first robotic fly. The mechanical fly has become a platform for a series of new high-tech systems. Designed to do what a fly does naturally, the tiny machine is the size of a fat housefly. Its mini wings allow it to stay in the air and perform controlled flight tasks.

    “It's extremely important for us to think about this as a whole system and not just a bunch of individual components (零件),” said Robert Wood, the Harvard engineering professor who has been working on the robotic fly project for over a decade. “The added difficulty with such a project is that actually none of those components are off the shelf and so we have to make them all on our own,” he said.

    They engineered a series of systems to start and drive the robotic fly. “The seemingly simple system which just moves the wings has a number of individual components, each of which individually has to perform well, and then has to be matched well to everything it's connected to,” said Wood. The flight device was built into a set of power, computation, sensing and control systems. Wood says the success of the project proves that the flying robot with these tiny components can be built and manufactured.

    Wood says the design offers a new way to study flight mechanics and control at insect- scale. Yet, the power, sensing and computation technologies on board could have much broader applications (应用). “You can start thinking about using them to answer open scientific questions, you know, to study biology in ways that would be difficult with the animals, but using these robots instead,” he said. “So there are a lot of technologies and open interesting scientific questions that are really what drives us on a day to day basis.”

    Car washes are a common sight throughout Nigeria, but Madinat Aliyu's roadside business is very special: she is the only woman car-washer in the north of the country.

    "This job has caused me a lot of problems," said the 27-year-old, checking cars waiting to be cleaned in Gusau, the capital of Zamfara state.

    Aliyu took up her work two years ago, hoping to use the 7, 000 naira (£28) she earned every month to put her younger sisters and brothers through school following the death of their mother, the only one who made money to support the family. But her family begged her to stop doing this job, and she has received "judgment and warnings" from strangers too.

    "My grandmother cried for many days. Some people thought it was a joke to bring more customers (顾客). Others said if she is doing it for money, let's just give her money to stop bringing us shame," she said as she got water from a well by the roadside. "But I hate laziness or depending on somebody else."

    However, Aliyu has admirers. "Some customers only allow her to wash their cars," said her colleague (同事) Shamsudeen Mohammed. "I was trained to wash cars by men, and I can honestly tell you women are better to work under," he added.

    Recently another woman came to Aliyu to ask for advice on starting her own car wash. "Unfortunately her family discouraged her. I told her, if you listen to them, you will find yourself begging or marrying a man who is older than your grandfather," she said.

    Though she is considered a pariah (贱民) by many, Aliyu has no plans to stop her work. "I see men doing something and I think I can do it too."

Four Best Zoos in the US

Saint Louis Zoo

Saint Louis Zoo is devoted to research and conservation. In 2022, it received the Worldwide Conservation Award from the World Association of Zoos and Aquariums for research and work in the Galapagos Islands. The zoo is home to more than 16.000 animals, which are kept in clean and spacious natural habitats （栖息地）. Open year-round and free to visit, Saint Louis Zoo houses Andean bears, polar bears and Sumatran orangutans, to name a few.

Zoo Atlanta

Opened in 1889 and one of the oldest zoos in the US. Zoo Atlanta is one of the top zoos worth visiting in Atlanta. Home to giant pandas. Sumatran tigers and western lowland gorillas （猩猩）. the zoo participates in local and global conservation programs. Visitors say the gorilla s and giant pandas are two of the highlights here. Adults (12-64): $34; Seniors (65 &over): $32; Children (3-11): $26; Children (3 &under): free.

Bronx Zoo

With more than 700 species and an area of 265 acres, Bronx Zoo in New York City is the largest urban zoo in the US. Since it's hard to see the entire zoo in one day, prioritize must-see attractions like the Wild Asia Monorail （单轨列车） and the Congo Gorilla Forest during your visit. Adults (13 &over): $33.95+; Seniors (65 &over): $28.95+; Children (3-12): $23.95+; Children (2 &under): free.

Oakland Zoo

Oakland Zoo is situated about 20 miles east of down town San Francisco. It is home to more than 850 native and foreign species. Visitors can see African lions, American alligators and grizzly bears in large natural habitats. Zoogoers say they like the hillside layout and the Sky Ride that affords bird's-eye views of the animals. Children under 2 years and seniors (76+): free; Children (2-14) and adults (15-75): $15.75.