Hidden from the noise of Washington, D.C., Hillwood Museum is a special treasure. It contains (包含) one of the finest personal collections (收藏) of Russian and French art in the world.

    Hillwood Museum was once the home of Marjorie Merriweather Post. She was a rich businesswoman. She owned one of the largest food companies in the United States. She was also very interested in collecting beautiful French art and furniture.

    She moved to Russia in the 1930s as her third husband, Joseph Davies, became the American ambassador (大使) in Moscow. Marjorie Merriweather Post had a love for Russian art as well. She bought the house in Washington in 1955 and she wanted to make it into a museum after her death. Many art experts helped Mrs. Post create its fine collection.

    Hillwood has many rooms which are filled with her treasures. Visitors can see beautiful music boxes from the eighteenth century and colorful paintings of European princesses (公主). Experts say the ancient wood and gold furniture from France is some of the finest ever made. Visitors can even look at Mrs. Post's jewels and clothes.

    The museum also has several beautiful gardens. One is designed like the gardens in Japan. It has a bridge and visitors can watch flowers floating in the water. Flowers are also grown all the year in a special glass building or greenhouse. These flowers are placed in the house throughout the year.

After a walk, visitors can rest at a nearby eating place. They can also buy objects to remember this special museum.

    Volunteering abroad is a great way to help others, improve your skills and become a more confident, independent person. If you are interested in volunteering abroad, here are some places to go.

    Australia

    If you seek a life on the beach, in a great climate with friendly people, Australia might be your best bet. With thousands of volunteers already signing up to leave for Australia during the holidays, it will be a very popular option.

    Brazil

    This vast country has some great opportunities on offer and is especially popular this year. A lot of volunteer work is available in Brazil centers on conservation and ecological projects. With the world's largest rainforest in Brazil, of which huge part is in danger, there are lots of different jobs you can do.

    Kenya

    Kenya is the destination for those seeking an African experience. Generally volunteers in Kenya work in orphanages(孤儿院)or with local children living in slums(贫民窟). There is a great demand for volunteers in Africa because many people live in poverty, so if you truly feel like making a difference to a community, Kenya should be at the top of your list.

    Costa Rica

    Golden sandy beaches, clear coastlines and beautiful cities are what Costa Rica is all about. Because of its small size, you can see a lot of the country in just a short time. You can really make the most of your time as a volunteer. A lot of work is needed with wildlife and ecological work, so if you want to look after turtles on the beach, Costa Rica could be just the place for you

    If all the food that's thrown away in three American cities could be saved, it would provide 68 million meals for people who don't have enough to eat, according to a recent study.

    The researchers found that, in the cities they surveyed（调查）, more than a kilogram of edible food per person is wasted each week. Edible food is food you can eat. It doesn't include things like apple cores（果核）, egg shells, or bones from meat. Fruits and vegetables were the most common edible foods found in the dustbin, followed by food leftover from meals. Eggs, bread and milk were also commonly thrown out.

    The people taking part in the survey gave several reasons for throwing edible food away. Most said the food went off. Some said they weren't interested in eating leftovers. A few said the food had passed the “Best Before” date printed on the label（标签）. When food is wasted—by families, restaurants or grocery stores—we are also wasting all of the resources that go into producing that food. That means we are wasting water, land, energy and labour, as well as the fuel needed to transport food.

    A lot of food is wasted before it even reaches the grocery store（食品杂货商）. Some food is damaged while it is being transported from the farm to the stores. Fruits and vegetables that don't look attractive enough don't even get put onto the shelves because most people won't buy them. Grocery stores, restaurants and hospitals also waste a large amount of food. The researchers suggest that grocery stores should donate any food that is still okay to eat to homeless shelters, instead of throwing it away. Prepared meals from hospitals or restaurants could also be donated to shelters.

    A serious problem for today's society is who should be responsible for our elderly and how to improve their lives. It is not only a financial problem but also a question of the system we want for our society. I would like to suggest several possible solutions to this problem.

    First, employers should take the responsibility for their retired employees. To make this possible, a percentage of profits should be set aside for this purpose. But when a company must take life-long responsibility for its employees, it may suffer from a commercial disadvantage due to higher employee costs.

    Another way of solving the problem is to return the responsibility to the individual. This means each person must save during his working years to pay for his years of retirement. This does not seem a very fair model since some people have enough trouble paying for their daily life without trying to earn extra to cover their retirement years. This means the government might have to step in to care for the poor.

    In addition, the government could take responsibility for the care of the elderly. This could be financed through government taxes to increase the level of pensions. Furthermore, some institutions should be created for senior citizens, which can help provide a comfortable life for them. Unfortunately, as the present situation in our country shows, this is not a truly viable answer. The government can seldom afford to care for the elderly, particularly when it is busy trying to care for the young.

    One further solution is that the government or social organizations establish some working places especially for the elderly where they are independent.

    To sum up, all these options have advantages and disadvantages. Therefore, it is reasonable to expect that some combination of these options may be needed to provide the care we hope to give to our elderly generations.

    One of the latest trends（趋势） in American Childcare is Chinese au pairs. Au Pair in Stamford, Conn, for example, has got increasing numbers of request for Chinese au pairs from aero to around 4, 000 since 2004. And that's true all across the country.

    "I thought it would be useful for him to learn Chinese at an early age" Joseph Stocke, the managing director of a company, says of his 2-year old son. "I would at least like to give him the chance to use the language in the future, " After only six months of being cared by 25-year-old woman from China, the boy can already understand basic Chinese daily expressions, his dad says.

    Li Drake, a Chinese native raising two children in Minnesota with an American husband, had another reason for looking for an au pair from China. She didn't want her children to miss out on their roots. " Because I am Chinese, my husband and I wanted the children to keep exposed to(接触) the language and culture." she says.

    "Staying with a native speaker is better for children than simply sitting in a classroom," says Suzanne Flynn, a professor in language education of Children. "But parents must understand that just one year with au pair is unlikely to produce wonders. Complete mastery demands continued learning until the age of 10 or 12. "

    The popularity if au pairs from China has been strengthened by the increasing numbers of American parents who want their children who want their children to learn Chinese. It is expected that American demand for au pairs will continue to rise in the next few years.

    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.