Top lists are lecturing people on everything from “100 places to visit” to “100 books to read”. Aren't you just tired of being told what to do with your time?

    Now you have a list to end all lists!

    Take a look at the following two examples from the list of “101 thins not to do”:

    Swim with Dolphins?

    Swimming with dolphins is one of the world's most profitable tourist activities. However, every dolphin will welcome having their busy, tiring day interrupted by tourists screaming pushing around them in the water. Worse yet, when dolphins get too near to the boats loaded tourists, they could get caught up in ropes and killed by propellers(螺旋桨).

    Here's a little secret. Dolphins look like smiling at you, but actually they're just opening mouths.

    Go to see the Mona Lisa?

    There must be something about the mysterious smile. The 6 million people who visit the lady in the Louvre every year can't all be wrong, after all. But they can be quite annoying, standing in front of you, holding up their cameras to prevent you from seeing anything. In fact, it is hard for you to see the painting clearly because you have to stay away from it for security reasons. After queuing for hours, many tourists can remain in front of the painting only for 15 seconds most.

    If the mysterious lady in the picture knew her fate, she wouldn't just be smiling, she'd be laughing.

    So, still long to see the Mona Lisa? If you want to find out more about the list, read 101 Things NOT to Do Before You Die. Visit www. not2dobeforeidie. co. uk and buy the book at a 20% discount.

    It seems that no one can live a happy life without friendship. While a great number of people expect others to be their friends, they don't give friendship back. That is why some friendships don't last long. To have a friend, you must learn to be one. You must learn to treat your friend the way you want your friend to treat you. Learning to be a good friend means learning three rules: be honest; be generous; be understanding.

    Honesty is where a good friendship starts. Friends must be able to trust one another. If you do not tell the truth, people usually find out. If a friend finds out that you haven't been honest, you may lose your friend's trust. Good friends always depend on one another to speak and act honestly.

    Generosity means sharing and sharing makes a friendship grow. You do not have to give your lunch money or your clothes. Naturally you will want to share your ideas and feelings. These can be very valuable to a friend. They tell your friend what is important to you. By sharing them, you help your friend know better.

    Sooner or later everyone needs understanding and help with each other. Something may go wrong at school. Talking about the problem can make it easier to solve. Turning to a friend can be a first step in solving the problem. So to be a friend you must listen and understand. You must try to put yourself in your friend's place so that you can understand the problem better.

    No two friendships are exactly alike. But all true friendships have three things in common. If you plan to keep your friends, you must practice honesty, generosity and understanding.

    Whether you prefer burning the midnight oil or going to bed early so you can get up at the break of dawn depends on your genes, according to experts.

    I jump out of bed each morning, eager to start an active day. But I can hear my neighbor's alarm clock ringing non-stop every morning and I doubt he gets to work on time.

    A lot of noise comes from his flat in the evening. He's happy to stay up watching TV till after midnight, while I go to bed early and try to sleep.

    Well, it might not be his fault after all. I'm called“a lark (百灵鸟)”and my neighbor“an owl (猫头鹰)”

    We all have inside “clocks”in the brain to control all kinds of bodily functions and it is reset every day by light. These inside clocks run to a different schedule in “larks” and “owls”. If you have a fast clock, you like to do things early, and if you have a slow clock, you like to do things late.

    Because we live in a 24/7 world, scientists believe it's important to understand a person's “chronotype?—the time of the day when they function the best. It could help us lead a healthier life.

    A US professor has studied sleeping patterns and thinks work times should be changed and made more individual to fit in with our chronotypes.

    And he has advice for those who can't choose their working hours:“If that's not possible, we should be more careful about light exposure,” says the professor. “You should try to go to work not in a covered vehicle but on a bike. The minute the sun sets we should use things that have no blue light, like computer, screens and other electronic devices.”

    It's school time again! You're probably feeling excited and maybe a little sad that summer is over. Some kids feel nervous or a little scared (害怕的) on the first day of school because of all the new things: new teachers, new friends, and even a new school. Luckily, these "new" worries only stick around for a little while. Let's find out more about going to a new school.

    Most teachers kick off the new school year by introducing themselves and talking about all the stuff you'll be doing that year. Some teachers give students a chance to tell something about themselves to the rest of the class, too. When teachers do the talking on the first day, they often go over classroom rules and school rules so you'll know what's allowed and what's not. Please pay close attention.

    You might already know a lot of people in your classes on the first day, but it's a great day to make new friends, so try to say hello to kids you know and new ones that you don't. Make the first move and you'll be glad, and so will your new friends!

    Seeing friends you haven't seen in a while can make the first day a good one. You can make the day feel special by wearing clothes that you really like. Maybe you got a great T-shirt on one of your vacations, or a pair of sneakers (运动鞋). It also can make you feel good to be prepared and have all the things you need, such as pencils, folders, and whatever else you'll be needing. But make sure that you pack them the night before in case you don't have time in the morning.

    Millions of Americans are living in areas at high-risk of river flooding, many of whom are completely unaware of the danger.

    While the risk of coastal flooding from extreme storms and rising seas rightly attracts plenty of attention, Americans are being urged to look inland for a similar threat receiving far less recognition: river flooding. New research conducted by the University of Bristol has shown that as many as 41 million Americans are highly at risk from river floods – more than three times the number previously estimated – with real estate (住宅区) in areas such as Louisiana, Florida, Arizona and West Virginia found to be especially at threat.

    For the first time, it has been possible to produce super quality flood risk maps that cover the whole United States, while previous Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) flood maps cover no more than 60 per cent of the country. The fine details provided by these new maps also makes it possible to predict the powerful effects of flooding on many smaller streams than before, thus raising concerns about the increasing number of people potentially threatened.

    "We were all surprised by how many Americans we find are exposed to flooding from rivers," says Oliver Wing, from the University of Bristol's School of Geographical Sciences. "It's particularly worrisome considering that most of these people aren't even aware of the risk they face."

    Additionally, there is the possibility that this lack of awareness means construction in high-risk river flooding areas will continue to rise, despite the threats. Estimates (估量) suggest that projected population growth, continued urbanization trends (城市化趋势), and the unpredictable threats caused by climate change will leave over 60 million Americans vulnerable (易受攻击的) to a 100-year flood by the middle of the century. 'All of this highlights the urgent need for large areas of floodplain and flood risk management planning,' adds Wing.

    The recession (衰退) of 2008-09 was remarkable in rich countries for its intensity, the following recovery for its weakness. The labour market has also broken the rules, as new research from the OECD, a think-tank of mainly rich countries, shows in its annual Employment Outlook.

    Young people always suffer in recessions. Employers stop hiring them; and they often get rid of new recruits because they are easier to dismiss. But in previous episodes, such as the recessions of the 1970s, 1980s and 1990s, older workers were also kicked off. This time is different. During the financial crisis in 2008, and since, they have done better than other age groups.

    The researchers focus on movements in "non-employment" as a share of the total population in three age groups between the final quarters of 2007 and 2012. This measure has the advantage of including not just unemployment, where people are looking for work, but also inactivity, where people are not seeking jobs. Whereas the average non-employment rate in the OECD has risen by four percentage points among young people and by one-and-a-half points among 25-to 54-year-olds, it has fallen by two points among the 55-64 age group.

    Why have older employees done so well? In some southern European countries they benefit from job protection not afforded to younger workers, but that did not really help them in past recessions. What has changed, says Stefano Scarpetta, head of the OECD's employment directorate, is that firms now bear the full costs of getting rid of older staff. In the past, early-retirement policies provided by governments (in the mistaken belief that these would help young people) made it cheaper to push grey-haired workers out of the door. These have largely stopped.

    Many will argue that older workers have done better at the expense of the young. That view is wrongheaded. First, it is a fallacy that a job gained for one person is a job lost for another; there is no fixed amount of work. And second, as the report shows, young and old people are by and large not substitutes in the workplace. They do different types of work in different types of occupation: younger people are keen on IT firms, for example, whereas older folk tend to be employed in more traditional industries. There are plenty of things that should be done to help the young jobless, but kicking older workers out of the workplace is not one of them.