Chinese people are, quite rightly, proud of their food. However, when foreigners like Britons and Americans think of Chinese food, their impression of it is different to what you might think.

    Growing up in the UK, the Chinese food I was used to eating was food I now recognize as being from Guangdong. For example, a typical dish I would order would be pork in sweet and sour sauce, probably with some rice and spring rolls on the side. This is the type of food we generally eat because most Chinese immigrants(移民) to the UK have come from Guangdong. You can tell, because when most British people try to copy the sound of Chinese, they actually copy the sound of Guangdong people—hearing the real Putonghua is sometimes a shock to British people who have grown up thinking it sounds completely different!

    British attitudes to Chinese food may be changing, though. Chinese-American chef Ken Hom has been on British TV for 30 years, and he told BBC Food: "Chinese food at the beginning of the 80s (in the UK) was sweet and sour pork, mainly. Most Brits had the unchangeable view of Chinese food… Now you are seeing more local Chinese food from Sichuan, Hunan and other areas of China. It is no longer just Guangdong food." Similarly, to most Americans, Chinese food doesn't go too far past orange chicken and fortune cookies, but more Chinese local dishes are becoming successful, especially in big cities like New York.

    Attitudes have not quite changed completely, though. Many foreigners who live in China will be familiar with this question from a relative back at home: "Have they given you dog yet?" Yes, perhaps because people still know too little about Chinese culture, many people believe that Chinese people love to eat dog meat. And of course, some people do eat dogs, which to Americans is like "eating a member of one's family" according to Vision Times. Also, Chinese people eat many other things people in the West do not—chicken claws, duck heads and some animals' organs.

    But what do foreigners think when they come to China and taste real Chinese food? You'll be glad to know that in my experience, the impressions have been very good.

    The British are known for their sense of humor. However, it is often difficult for foreigners to understand their jokes. The main point to remember is that the British often use understatement.

     Understatement means saying less than you think or feel. For example, if someone gets very wet in a shower of rain, he might say, “It's a little damp (潮湿的) outside.” Or, if someone is very impolite and shouts at another person, someone else might say, “She isn't exactly friendly.” Understatement is often used in unpleasant situation or to make another person look silly. Understatement plays an important part in British humor.

    Another key to understanding British humor is that the British like to make fun of themselves as well as others. They often laugh about the silly and unpleasant things that happen to our everyday life when someone accidently falls over in the street. They also like to make jokes about people from different classes of society. They like to make jokes about their accents, the way they dress and the way they behave. What's more, the British love to watch comedies (喜剧) about people who do not know how to behave in society. The comedies series Mr. Bean is a good example of this kind of humor.

    Mr. Bean is the character created by British actor Rowan Atkinson in 1990. Mr. Bean doesn't talk often, and instead he uses his body movement and facial expressions to make people laugh. Perhaps what makes Mr. Bean so funny is that he does things that adults in the real world cannot do. Mr. Bean is popular in many countries around the world because you do not have to speak English to understand the humor. Because of this, many people have become familiar with the British sense of humor.

Hong Kong Science Museum

    You might really like the Science Museum if you are interested in science. The Museum wants to teach kids science. It gives them a place to have fun with the equipment there. However, adults can learn some science too.

    The Museum has 6,500 square metres. There are over 500 exhibits, and nearly 70 percent of them are suitable for visitors of all ages. Since its opening in April 1991, the Hong Kong Science Museum has proven itself to be a good place for learning science. Through having better exhibits and fun science programs in an enjoyable environment, the Museum wants to popularize science to the public and the support science education in schools. Visitors at the Science Museum can visit the exhibition in their own way and enjoy the fun of discovery learning.

    If you want to have a visit, you'd better read the information carefully.

    A biologist once criticized for stealing eggs from the nests of the rarest bird in the world has been awarded the "Nobel Prize" of conservation after his methods saved nine species from extinction.

Professor Carl Jones won the 2016 Indianapolis Prize — the highest accolade in the field of animal conservation — for his 40 years of work in Mauritius, where he saved an endangered kestrel from becoming the next Great Auk.

    When the 61-year-old first travelled to the east African island in the 1970s, he was told to close down a project to save the Mauritius kestrel. At the time there were just four left in the wild, making it the rarest bird on Earth. However, he stayed, using the techniques of captive breeding (人工繁殖), which involved snatching eggs from the birds' nests and hatching(孵化)them under incubators, prompting the mothers to lay another set of eggs in the wild.

    A decade later, the number of Mauritius kestrels had soared to over 300 and today there are around 400 in the wild. The biologist has also been necessary in efforts to bring other rare species back from the edge of extinction, including the pink pigeon, echo parakeet and Rodrigues warbler.

    Prof Jones was awarded the $250,000 (£172,000) prize at a ceremony in London.

"As a young man in my 20s, I certainly didn't enjoy the stress and the tension of the criticism I received," reflecting on the start of his career, he said the Maurutius kestrel project had been seen as a "dead loss" at the time. In the 1970s there was fierce opposition to the captive breeding techniques, with critics arguing that they were too risky and took the emphasis off breeding in the wild.

    Prof Jones has devoted his whole life to his work, only becoming a father for the first time eight years ago, at 53. He said receiving the prize was particularly important to him, because it proved that his work to save birds was right.

    As we know, Julian Beever is an international well-known sidewalk chalk artist whose drawings have appeared on the streets of London, Buenos Aires, Paris, New York, and countless other cities around the world. Beever creates drawings that look completely three- dimensional when seen from the correct angle.

    Now, in his book, Pavement chalk artist: The three-dimensional drawings of Julian Beever, the artist shares some of his most fascinating and humorous pieces, Here are a few examples you'll find in the book.

   ●Philadelphia eagle

    In Pennsylvania, Beever created "Philadelphiaeagle" a huge drawing with an eagle landing successfully on an American national flag.

   ●Meeting Mr. Frog

    "Meeting Mr. Frog" was created in Salamanca, Spain, and is about a realistic-looking frog sitting on a Lily pad.

    Swimming pool in the high street

My personal favorite is "Swimming pool in the high street" from Brussels, which is about a woman relaxing in a swimming pool—--a swimming pool sunk into the middle of the street, that is!

    Along with an introduction about his background, Beever includes a description of the techniques he used and the challenges he overcame with every drawing. He shares information about his time at home in the UK. and abroad; there is a fun story to back up each piece of art.

    Beever's artwork is truly jaw dropping. You're sure to spend ages turning the leaves back and forth, surprised at how one man can create what looks like a three-dimensional design on a flat surface with just a bit of chalk. From animals to superheroes to famous buildings, the paintings are a wonder to lay eyes on.

    Payment chalk artist: The three-dimensional drawings of Julian Beever is surely worth a look. And another look. This 112-page hardcover book is available now from Firefly Books at a list price of $ 29.95