A private sixth grade is set to start its lessons at 1.30 pm every day because the school's teacher thinks his students will study better after a morning lie-in (懒觉).

    Instead of rising early for a 9 am start, students at the ￡15,000-a-year Hampton Court House, in East Molesey, Surrey, will get to enjoy a lie-in and work from 1.30 pm until 7pm. Head teacher Guy Holloway says the move for all sixth grade students, set to begin from September, has been made according to research by scientists. He predicts (预测) that not only will his students aged 16 and upwards get great night's sleep, but their productivity (效率) will also be improved.

    The co-educational school will have the latest start time in the UK, and will be the only one to begin lessons in the afternoon.

    Experts say young people are programmed to get up later, and that rather than laziness it is simply a shift (转变) in their body clocks.

    There are 168 hours in a week and how productive they are depends on how they choose to use those hours,' said Mr Holloway. 'At Hampton Court House we don't think we have the answer for everybody; it's about what works in our school. We want to get them into a condition where they can get great sleep and study well.' He said students would also benefit from reduced journey times as they travel to and from school after rush hour (上下班高峰时间).

    Year 10 student Gabriel Purcell-Davis will be one of the first of 30 A-level students to start at the later time. 'I want to wake up in my bed, not in my maths lesson,' said the 15-year-old. Lessons for all other students at the school will still begin at 9 am as usual.

    "You'll be blind by the time you're twenty-five," a doctor at Children's Hospital predicted. "Your blood sugars are much too high." It consumed me. No matter where I was or what I was doing, it was overhead like a dark cloud, waiting for just the right opportunity to break open and destroy my world.

    I liked painting. Losing myself in painting filled me with peace. Painting provided me with the only place where I could escape from those threatening words.

    When I was twenty-one, my right eye went blind. Precisely three months after my twenty-fifth birthday, I had a massive hemorrhage (大出血) in my left eye because of an accident. For the next twenty years, vision came and went. I went through many eye operations in an attempt to keep my vision. But after one final operation, I lost the battle and all remaining vision. And I buried all dreams of painting.

    Desperate, I enrolled in (注册) a sixteen-week program for the blind and visually impaired (损伤的). I learned personal adjustment and the use of a computer with adaptive software. A whole new world opened up to me through this program.

    "Jaws and Window-Eyes are leading software for the blind," my instructor told me. "You can use the Internet, e-mail and Microsoft with all its tools and features." It's amazing! Hope went up for the first time in years. "By learning how to use hot keys to control the mouse, you can use Microsoft Access, Excel and Powerpoint," my instructor added.

    For the next several years, I learned that when one door closes, another door opens. There are plenty of choices available for the blind and visually impaired through the gift of technology. Not only do I have a speaking computer, but I have a speaking watch, alarm clock and calculator.

    The world's first-known nursery for baby giant manta rays(蝠鲼) has been discovered hidden away in the Gulf of Mexico, the place of 70 miles off the coast of Texas, after studying decades of giant manta ray data from the area by the scientists.

    Where the baby manta rays grow up has long troubled scientists, as they are rarely spotted in the four to five years it takes them to become adults, when they can often grow to more than 20ft wide.

In the study Mr Stewart and colleagues describe a reef (暗礁)—filled with mantas of all ages—where the sea floor runs down into deeper water. He said "We think they may be feeding on specific types of zooplankton(浮游生物) there, then migrating up toward the surface, where we saw them. They might be hanging around the banks because it could be a little safer than open water. We've seen them so rarely that we know very little about these baby manta rays. We don't know how far they move, or exactly what they feed on, or all of the habitats these access.”

    Giant manta rays are listed as species dying out by protectors, although actual population numbers of the mysterious "gentle giant" are hard to calculate. Sightings of the closely-related reef manta, however, have dropped by 90 percent in regions of southeast Asia in the past decade, according to a study.

    Fishing is considered the biggest threat to giant manta numbers, both intentional and accidental. Their gill plates(腮下肉)- the parts through which they filter(过滤) their food from seawater-are sold in China for medical purposes, while they often end up as something caught by mistake due to their huge wings.

    Dreaming of summer picnics filled with family and fun? We've come up with 4 of the top picnic areas across the US.

    Cumberland Islands, Georgia

    Just a few hours south of Savannah, this national seashore is a picnic paradise. It's an unspoiled place in the Deep South with over 50 miles of hiking trails (小径). Covered in Spanish moss, the trails are lined with trees and since it's still a rural area, the stars line up for a spectacular show at night and create the perfect evening starlit picnic opportunity.

    Grant Park, Chicago

    If you are looking for delicious food in Chicago, go for a taste of a 20-day, lake-front, foodie festival that happens in October each year. Grab a spot near the fountain to enjoy your picnic, appreciate the city scenery and lake views and relax with family and friends. If you are there on July 4^th, be sure to plan the day to include the fireworks display at the Navy Pier.

    Cranberry Islands, Maine

    Here, you'll enjoy natural picnics with island views. The islands are a delightful group of islands about 20 minutes offshore from Acadia National Park. You can visit the islands by private boat or ferry (渡船) service. Bring a picnic basket along for the ride as it's a romantic picnic area to take your special someone or go for a family outing to visit the islands.

    Big Sur, California

    The Point Lobos State Reserve is a small gem. Besides the coastal wildlife there are rare plant communities, and unique geological formations. It's good to have a picnic there. We recommend bringing a telescope, because much of the wildlife can be seen only at a distance.

    If you're living in or visiting New York, take a few hours to visit one of these places to ice skate during your time in New York City.

    Bank of America Winter Village at Bryant Park

    The free rink in Manhattan's Bryant Park first opened in 2005 At 17,000 square feet, it is about half the size of the Wollman Rink in Central Park and twice as big as the rink at Rockefeller Center.

    As Manhattan's only free skating rink, and centrally located at that, it tends to be mobbed(闱聚) with waits up to 2 hours on weekend days.

    Sky Rink at Chelsea Piers

    Manhattan's only year-round skating rink is a delight that's been around since 1965 It's large, indoors, and has few lines, and courteous staff It's also, amazingly, open 24 hours a day In the winter it sometimes gets so cold that the ice cracks, but at least they fix it!

    Prices for skating admission is $11 and skate rental $6.

    Riverbank Stile Park Ice Skating Rink

    This sizeable outdoor rink is open to the public Friday through Sunday, and has a root to prevent December snows and April rain .And since Riverbank Stale Park overlooks the Hudson, you'll have nice views of the river and the George Washington Bridge as a backdrop.

    Admission is S5 for adults, children S3 Skate rental is $6 The Ice Kink at Rockefeller Center Ice skating at Rockefeller Center is a truly unique New York holiday staple(重要内容). It is the most sumptuous(豪华的)getting for skating Since opening on Christmas Day back in 1936 this skating rink has been an institution at the Rockefeller.

    Admission is $25—$32 for adults, children up to 12 years S15, skate retual $12.

Africa's Most Amazing Places to Visit

    Pyramids of Giza, Egypt

    The most famous of the structures at Giza, near Cairo, the Pyramid of King Khufu was built around 2650 BC from 2.5 million blocks of stone. Its sides face north, south, east and west.

    Sahara Dunes, Morocco

    The most user-friendly part of the Sahara is accessible from the northern edge of Morocco. You can camp out in Tazzarine, where runners from all over the world complete the weeklong Marathon every spring. The foot of the Merzouga Dunes is the best location for gazing at stars, totally free of light pollution.

    Lake Retba (Lac Rose), Senegal

    There are few pink lakes in the world and one of them, Lake Retba, also called Lac Rose by locals is in the Cap-Vert peninsula in Senegal. The best times to see the lake at its pinkest is during Senegal's dry season, between November and June.

    Nyika Plateau National Park, Malawi

    With a plateau cut by numerous rivers that reach Lake Malawi by way of waterfalls off the eastern edge of the mountains, Nyika, the largest national park in Malawi, is one of the most beautiful in Africa. The eastern border of the plateau forms the wall of the Great Rift Valley. The great domes of hills have gentle slopes, making Nyika perfect for both hiking and mountain biking as well as Jeep exploration.